A 



CHILD'S BOOK 



OP 

Religion. 



for Smttmg Stjmols aitb Jkraws. 



COMPILED BY 

0. B. PROTHINGHAM. 



[r^ BOSTON: 
WALKER, FULLER, AND COMPANY. 
1 8 66. 




Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, by 

O. B. FROTHLSiGHAM, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massa- 
chusetts. 




Geo. C. Rand & Avery, Stereotypers and Printers. 



PREFACE. 



A few 'words are necessary to explain the purpose 
of this little book, and the way in which it may be used 
to the best advantage. 

The author has thought it wiser to make a collection 
of materials for worship and instruction than to arrange 
a formal series of services or lessons that might interfere 
with freedom of selection and combination on the part 
of the teacher or superintendent. 

The questions and answers under the captions 
" Truth " and " The Good Life 99 are not designed 
to take the place of other teaching, either by manual or 
discourse ; but are merely intended to supplement and 
vary such teaching as may be adopted. Where manuals 
are used, one of the catechisms, or some portion of one, 
may be read at such intervals of time as may be found 
convenient ; the whole being recited, perhaps, once in a 
twelvemonth. Where no manuals are used, but the 
teachers are left mainly to their own resources, they will 
find abundant material for lessons in Part DOE. by taking 
the Questions and Answers, in course, from week to 
week-; or by selecting single passages for oral exposition. 

iii 



iv 



PREFACE. 



The " Golden Words " may be used as texts for 
lessons, or may be committed to memory by the children. 

The Creed may be recited by the whole school in 
unison, three or four times in the year, or on festival- 
days, as the conductors of the schools may decide. 

The author is persuaded that the element of worship 
should enter more largely than it does into the system- 
atic instruction of the young. He has, therefore, made 
copious selections in that department ; offering no writ- 
ten prayers, but endeavoring to express every form of 
the devout sentiment in language richer than he could 
frame. The poetical pieces are designed to be read 
responsively, like the psalms ; teacher and scholars recit- 
ing the alternate lines in full school. It is recommended 
that one or more of these, and one or more of the 
pieces in the Second Part, be used at each service ; the 
choice of pieces being guided by the feeling of the super- 
intendent, or bv the tone he wishes to give to the general 
exercise. 

The special forms of service for the festival -days 
indicate the order which the writer has found most con- 
venient in the administration of his own school. 

A few hymns and tunes, as many as the space would 
allow, and perhaps enough for ordinary use, are added 
to complete the design of the volume. 

The book is, in the main, a compilation ; as every such 
book must be. All available sources have been freely 
drawn from, with suitable acknowledgment to the au- 
thors. Where the pieces were entirely original, as is the 



PREFACE. 



v 



case with those taken from A. J. Davis's little Manual 
for the Children's Lyceum, special permission to use 
them was cordially granted. 

The list of " Rules for the Good Life," and the 
Questions and Answers on the subject of Rewards and 
Punishments, were copied, with some changes, from 
Leigh Hunt's lovely little book, " The Religion of 
the Heart." For the rest of the Questions and 
Answers, and for the Creed, the writer himself is respon- 
sible. The " Legends of Virtue" were taken from 
different collections, and have been written out for the 
benefit of the younger children, who can hear them read 
by parent or teacher. The number of them might have 
been indefinitely increased, had the size of the volume 
not forbidden. 

Such as it is, the book is an experiment. If it makes 
a contribution to the meagre literature of the Sunday 
School and the Home Worship, or fills, for a time, a 
place now unfilled, the compiler will be satisfied. 

O. B. F. 



CONTENTS. 



PART I. — WORSHIP. 



1. Calls to Prayer. 

Page. 

THE CHILD'S PRAYER 1 

THE BEAUTY OF PRAYER 2 

PRAYER IS OF NO PLACE 4 

PRAYER IS OF NO FORM 5 

THE ACCEPTABLE OFFERING 6 

THE FORM OF GOD 7 

THE CALL OF NATURE 8 

THE CALL OF THE FLOWERS 10 

THE CALL OF THE BIRDS 11 

THE JOY OF WORSHIP 12 

WHAT RABBI JEHOSHA SAID 13 

THE BOY AXD THE ANGEL -14 

THE CHILD AND THE ANGELS 17 

THE CHILD AND THE DOVE 18 

2. Aspiration. 

O LORD! THOU HAST SEARCHED ME AND KNOWN 

ME . 19 

GOD OF THE MOUNTAIN 35 

vii 



viii CONTENTS. 

Page. 

PRAISE 36 

THE GOOD SHEPHERD , 37 

THE GOD OF THE SEASONS .38 

TO A SKYLARK. 41 

JOYOUS AS MORNING 42 

ASPIRATIONS OF YOUTH 43 

THOUGHTS OF HEAVEN .44 

A SUPPLICATION .40 

THE SOUL'S CALM 47 

THE HEART'S PRAYER ........ 48 

THE HYMN OF NATURE ....... 49 

GOD'S PRESENCE IN NATURE 50 

PRAISE TO NATURE'S GOD ...... 51 

OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN . 51 

GOD IS LOVE, AND LOVE ALONE 52 

FOUNTAIN OF DIVINE LOVE 53 

THE UNIVERSAL PRAYER 55 

EVENING PRAYER 5G 

THE DAY AND THE NIGHT ARE THINE ... 57 

AN EVENING SONG 58 

REST 59 

SONG OF THE NIGHT 59 

VESPER HYMN . 61 

UPWARD 61 

A CHILD'S HYMN 62 

3. Trust. 

the love of god 64 

trusting love 65 

the guides 67 

patience ........... 68 

song of faith 68 

SONG OF CONFIDENCE 69 



CONTENTS. Ix 

Page. 

SONG OF TRUST 70 

SONG OF FORTUNE 71 

THE LITTLE TREE 72 

A DOUBTING HEART 75 

THANKFULNESS- . 76 

ONE BY ONE 78 

THE ARK AND DOVE 79 

GLADNESS 80 

THOU, GOD, SEEST ME 81 

GOD'S LOVE IN THE FLOWERS 83 

MINISTERING SPIRITS 84 

CONTENTMENT . ' . .86 

PEACE . . . ......... 87 

THE ANGELS' GREETING 88 

THE BETTER LAND 90 

AVE SCATTER SEEDS . 91 

SCATTERED IDOLS 92 

THE FLIGHT OF TIME 92 

CONTENTMENT 93 

NOME MURMUR . . . . . . . . . . 94 

THOU CAM'ST NOT 95 

PASSING AWAY 95 

PART II. — THE GOOD LIFE. 

RULES FOR THE GOOD LIFE . . . . . ,97 

PUNISHMENTS 100 

REWARDS 106 

LESSONS IN THE GOOD LIFE 110 

THE PSALM OF LIFE 123 

EARNESTNESS 124 

PATIENCE 125 



X CONTENTS. 

Page. 

THE SULTAN'S LESSON. ....... 126 

THE BANNER AND THE CARPET 127 

PARADISE 128 

STRIVE, WAIT, AND PRAY 129 

GIVE 130 

SOWING AND REAPING 131 

WORDS 132 

WISHES 134 

THE DARLING LITTLE GIRL ...... 136 

THE LESSON OF THE FLOWERS 13? 

THE BEGGAR . . .138 

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS . / . . . . .140 

"NOT TO MYSELF ALONE" 141 

EVERY LITTLE HELPS ........ 143 

LITTLE DEEDS . . . 144 

GENTLENESS 145 

DON'T FRET 147 

LET IT PASS 148 

LEND A HAND 150 

CATCH THE SUNSHINE .151 

THE FOUNTAIN 152 

OVER THE SEAS OUR GALLEYS WENT . . .153 

LIFE'S WORK . .156 

A PARABLE ^.157 

ABOU BEN ADHEM 159 

YAMA AND THE DISCIPLE 160 

THE LITTLE BELL IN THE HEART .... 163 

THE CHILD'S WAY TO HEAVEN 164 

LABOR . . . 166 

THE KINGDOM OF GOD 168 

FOLLOW ME ... 169 

THE BUILDERS 170 

THE LADDER OF ST. AUGUSTINE 172 

THE HOLY SPIRIT .. .. . 174 



CONTENTS. 



PART III. — TRUTH. 

: j a§e 

• TALK BETWEEN THE TEACHER AND THE CHILD. 

God . . . . . ■ 175 

The Spirit .180 

Jesus the Teacher 185 

Jesus the Saint 188 

A CHILD'S CREED 192 

GOLDEN WORDS . . . . . . . . .193 

Legends of Virtue. 

THE POWER OF TRUST 209 

TO DO GOD'S WILL IS TO BEHOLD GOD'S FACE . 211 
THE LOVING EYE SEES BEAUTY EVERYWHERE . 216 
"HE PRAYETH BEST WHO LOVETH BEST" . . 217 
NEVER DESPISE SMALL THINGS ..... 218 

CHARITY TO THE SINNING .219 

MORE WAYS THAN ONE OF DOING GOOD . . 221 
CHARITY THE TRUE SAINTLINESS .... 223 
SHALL WE EVER TIRE OF HEAVEN? .... 226 

THE INDIAN BOY AND THE FIRE 2*8 

POWER OF THE DIVINE CHILD 231 

THE DIVINE CHILD AT PLAY 236 

THE DIVINE CHILD WITH HIS COMPANIONS . . 237 
EVILS QUICKLY KILLED IN THE SEED . . .241 

THE BEST USE FOR A GIFT 243 

THE INVISIBLE KING 244 

A PARABLE OF CONSCIENCE . . . . . .247 

A CHRISTMAS SERVICE 249 

THE OLD YEAR 252 

THE NEW YEAR 256 

EAST BR 200 

WHITSUNDAY 263 



xu 



CONTENTS. 



PART IV.— HYMNS. 

Page. 

OUR FATHER, WE THANK THEE FOR SLEEP . . 269 

POOR AXD NEEDY THOUGH I BE 269 

FATHER, NOW TO THEE WE RAISE .... 270 

LITTLE TRAVELLERS, ZIONWARD 271 

APPROACH NOT THE ALTAR WITH GLOOM IN THY 

SOUL 272 

THE LORD IS 21 Y SHEPHERD, NO WANT SHALL I 

KNOW - . ... 273 

HOW DEAR IS THE THOUGHT THAT THE ANGELS 

OF GOD 273 

ACQUAINT YOURSELVES EARLY, DEAR CHILDREN, 

WITH GOD 273 

THE SERAPHS BRIGHT ARE HOVERING . . .274 
NOW TO OUR LOVING FATHER, GOD .... 275 
HOW BEAUTIFUL THE SETTING SUN .... 275 
FATHER, ADORED IN WORLDS ABOVE . . .273 
GOD IS SO GOOD THAT HE WILL HEAR . . .277 
NEW EVERY MORNING IS THE LOVE . . .277 
MORN AMID THE MOUNTAINS . . . . . . 278 

HAND IN HAND WITH ANGELS 278 

LITTLE DROPS OF WATER 279 

PLUCK THE ROSE WHILE BLOOMING .... 279 
SING TO THE LORD, AND LOUD PROCLAIM . . 280 
UP TO THE THRONE OF GOD IS BORNE . . .281 
OH! COME, LOUD ANTHEMS LET US SING . . 2S1 
HOW SWEETLY FLOWED THE GOSPEL'S SOUND . 281 
LO, THE LILIES OF THE FIELD . . . . .282 
GRACIOUS GOD, OUR HEAVENLY FATHER . . 283 
FATHER, NOW TO THEE WE RAISE .... 2S3 
ALL AROUND US, FAIR WITH FLOWERS . . ,'284 
FATHER, HEAR THE PRAYER WE OFFER . . 38 



CONTENTS. 



xiii 



P&ge. 



GOD HAS SAID, FOREVER BLESSED .... 285 
IN OUR CHILDHOOD'S MOENING, FATHER . . 285 
LIFE IS NOT A FLEETING SHADOW .... 256 
GUIDE 3IE, 0 THOU GREAT JEHOVAH . . .28(3 
PRAISE THE LORD, WHEN BLUSHING MORNING . 287 
GOD IS LOVE; HIS 3IERCY BRIGHTENS . . .287 

COME, JOIN THE NOBLE ARMY 288 

QUIET, LORD, ICY FRO WARD HEART .... 289 
NOW TO HEAVEN OUR PRAYER ASCENDING . . 290 
SHALL THIS LIFE OF MINE BE WASTED . . .291 

SAVIOUR, TO THE LIVING WELL 292 

PRAISE TO GOD; OH! LET US RAISE .... 293 
LET US, WITH A GLADSOME MIND .... 293 
I LOVED A SONG-BIRD OF THE SPRING . 29ft 

NOW THAT MY JOURNEY'S JUST BEGUN . . .294 
LORD, I WOULD OWN THY TENDER CARE . . 295 
WE LOVE THE FATHER, HE'S SO GOOD . . .295 
THERE'S NOT A TINT THAT PAINTS THE ROSE . 29i5 
MY GOD, MY FATHER! BLISSFUL NAME . . . 29o 
BE THOU, O GOD! BY NIGHT, BY DAY . . .297 
THE BUD WILL SOON BECOME A FLOWER . . 297 
THE BIRD LET LOOSE IN EASTERN SKIES . . 298 
WHAT IF THE LITTLE RAIN SHOULD SAY . . 299 
WHEN WARMER SUNS, AND BLUER SKIES . . 299 
O GOD, OUR STRENGTH! TO THEE THE SONG . . 300 
HOW SWEET, HOW HEAVENLY, IS THE SIGHT . 301 
EVEN HE WHO LIT THE STARS OF OLD . . . 301 
THE SWEET JUNE DAYS ARE COME AGAIN . . 302 
LORD, I WOULD OWN THY TENDER CARE . . 303 
ANOTHER HAND IS BECKONING US .... 303 
O HOME OF LOVE! WE SING OF THEE . . . 305 
THE SUN SHINES BRIGHT IN THE SPIRIT'S HAPPY 

HOME 307 

IN THE TWILIGHT HOURS, 'MID THE BREATH OF 

FLOWERS 309 



xiv 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 

KIND WORDS CAN NEVER DIE 310 

'TIS A LESSON YOU SHOULD HEED .... 311 
WEEP NOT FOR THOSE WHO HAVE PASSED FROM 

OUR SIGHT 313 

THERE'S A WONDERFUL TREE, A WONDERFUL 

TREE 315 

HARK! A BURST OF HEAVENLY MUSIC . . . 317 



Child's Book of Religion. 



PART I. 

WORSHIP. 

I. 

Calls to Prayer. 



I. THE CHILD'S PRAYER. 

BY Alpine lake, 'neath shady rock, 
The herdboy knelt beside his flock, 
And softly told, with pious air, 
His alphabet as evening prayer. 

Unseen, his pastor lingered near. 

" My child, what means the sound I hear ? 

May I not in the worship share, 

And raise to heaven my evening prayer? 

"Where'er the hills and valleys blend, 
The sounds of prayer and praise ascend. 
My child, a prayer yours cannot be : 
You've only said your A B C." 

1 1 



2 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



" I have no better way to pray : 

All that I know, to God I say; 

I tell the letters on my knees: 

He makes the words himself to please." 

Miss Lander (from the German), 



2. THE BEAUTY OF PRAYEK* 

IT is good to pray unto God : for his sorrowing 
children 

Turns he ne'er from the door ; but he heals and 

helps and consoles them. 
It is good to pray when all things are prospering 

with us, — 

Pray in fortunate days ; for Life's most beautiful 
Fortune 

Kneels down before the Eternal's throne, and, 

with hands interfolded, 
Praises, thankful and moved, the only Giver of 

blessings. 

For do ye know, ye children, one blessing that 
comes not from heaven ? 

What has mankind forsooth, the poor, that it has 
not received ? 

Therefore fall on thy knee, ancl pray. The ser- 
aphs, adoring, 

Cover with pinions six their face in the glory of 
Him who 

Hung his masonry pendent on nought when the 
world he created. 



WORSHIP. 



3 



Earth declareth his might, and the firmament 

speaketh his glory. 
Races blossom ahd die, and stars fall downward 

from heaven, — 
Downward like withered leaves. At the last 

stroke of midnight, millenniums 
Lay themselves down at his feet; and he sees 

them, and counts them as nothing. 
Yet why do ye fear, ye children? This awful 

Avenger, 

Ah! is a merciful God. God's voice was not 

heard in the earthquake, 
Not in the fire, nor the storm; but it was in the 

whispering breezes. 
Love is the root of creation, — God's essence. 

Worlds without number 
Lie in his bosom like children. He made them 

for this purpose only, — 
Only to love, and to be loved again. He breathed 

forth his Spirit 
Into the slumbering dust ; and, upright standing, 

it placed 

Its hand on its heart, and felt it was warm with 

a flame out of heaven. 
Quench, oh, quench not that flame ! It is the 

breath of your being ! 

From the Swedish of Tegner, 

Translated by Longfellow, 



4 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



3. PKAYER IS OF NO PLACE. 

OH ! wherefore this dream of the earthly abode 
Of humanity clothed in the brightness of 

God? 

Were our spirits but turned from the outward 
and dim, 

They could gaze even now on the presence of 
Him: 

Not in clouds, nor in terrors, but gentle as when 
In love and in meekness he moved among men; 
And the voice which breathed peace to the 

waves of the sea 
In the hush of my spirit would whisper to me. 
Then what if our feet may not tread where he 

stood, 

Nor our ears hear the dashing of Galilee's flood, 
Nor our eyes see the cross w^hich he bowed him 
to bear, 

Nor our knees press Gethsemane's garden of 
prayer ? 

Yet, loved of the Father, thy spirit is near 
To the meek and the lowly and penitent here; 
And the voice of thy love is the same, even now, 
As at Bethlehem's tomb or on Olivet's brow* 

J. G. Whiltier. 



WORSHIP, 



6 



4. PRAYER IS OF NO FORM. 
OT all the pomp of rituals, nor the savor 



Of gums and spices, can the unseen One 
please. 

As if his ear could bend with childish favor 
To the poor flattery of the organ-keys ! 
Not such the service the benignant Father 
Requireth at his earthly children's hands ; 
Not the poor offering of vain rites ; but rather 
The simple duty man from man demands. 
For he whom Jesus loved has truly spoken : 
The holier worship which he deigns to bless 
Restores the lost, and binds the spirit broken, 
And feeds the widow and the fatherless. 
O brother-man ! fold to thy heart thy brother. 
Where pity dwells, the peace of God is there : 
To worship rightly is to love each other ; 
Each smile a hymn, each kindly deed a prayer. 
Follow with reverent steps the great example 
Of Him whose holy work was doing good ; 
So shall the wide earth seem our Father's temple, 
Each loving life a psalm of gratitude. 




J. G. Whittier. 



6 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



5. THE ACCEPTABLE OFFERING. 

TO heaven approached a pious saint 
From wandering in the darkness late, 
And, tapping timidly and faint, 
Besought admission at the gate. 

Said God, "Who seeks to enter here?" 

"'Tis I, dear friend!" the saint replied, 
Trembling all through with hope and fear. 

" If it be thou, remain outside ! " 

Sadly to earth the poor saint turned 
To bear the scourging of life's rods ; 

But still his heart within him yearned 
To mix and lose its love in God's. 

He roamed alone through weary years, 
By cruel men still scorned and mocked ; 

Till, purified by fires and tears, 
Again he went, again he knocked. 

Said God, " Who now is at the door ? " — 

" It is thyself, beloved Lord ! " 
The saint replied. He doubts no more, 

But passes in to his reward. 

Alger'' s Oriental Pottry. 



WORSHIP. 



1 



6. THE FORM OF GOD. 

TO Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love 
All pray in their distress, 
And to these virtues of delight 
Return their thankfulness. 

For Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love 

Is God our Father dear ; 
And Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love 

Is man, his child and care. 

For Mercy has a human heart ; 

Pity, a human face ; 
And Love, the human form divine ; 

And Peace, the human dress. 

Thus every man in every clime, 

That prays in his distress, 
Prays to the Human Form divine, — 

Love, Mercy, Pity, Peace. 

And all must love the Human Form, 

In heathen, Turk, or Jew : 
Where Mercy, Love, and Pity dwell, 

There God is dwelling too. 

William Blake. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



7. THE CALL OF NATURE. 

THE harp at Nature's advent strung 
Has never ceased to play ; 
The song the stars of morning sung 
Has never died away. 

And prayer is made, and praise is given, 

By all things near and far : 
The ocean looketh up to heaven, 

And mirrors every star. 

Its waves are kneeling on the strand. 

As kneels the human knee ; 
Their white locks bowing to the sand, — 

The priesthood of the sea. 

They pour their glittering treasures forth 
Their gifts of pearl they bring ; 

And all the listening hills of earth 
Take up the song they sing. 

The green Earth sends her incense up 
From many a mountain shrine : 

From folded leaf and dewy cup 
She pours her sacred wine. 



WORSHIP. 



9 



The mists above the morning rills 

Rise white as wings of prayer ; 
The altar curtains of the hills 

Are sunset's purple air. 

The winds with hymns of praise are loud, 

Or low with sobs of pain, 
The thunder organ of the cloud, 

The dropping tears of rain. 

With drooping head, and branches crossed, 

The twilight forest grieves, 
Or speaks with tongues of Pentecost 

From all its sunlit leaves. 

The blue sky is the temple's arch ; 

Its transept, earth and air ; 
The music of its starry march, 

The chorus of its prayer. 

So Nature keeps the reverent frame 

With wilich her years began, 
And all her signs and voices shame 

The prayerless heart of man, 

J. G. Whittier. 



10 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



8. THE CALL OF THE ELOWERS. 

LO! the lilies of the field, 
How their leaves instruction yield ! 
Hark to Nature's lesson given 
By the blessed birds of heaven ! 
Every bush and tufted tree 
Warbles sweet philosophy : 
" Children, fly from doubt and sorrow : 
God provideth for the morrow ! " 

Say, with richer crimson glows 
The kingly mantle than the rose '? 
Say, have kings more wholesome fare 
Than we poor citizens of air? 
Barns nor hoarded grain have we ; 
Yet we carol merrily. 
" Children, fly from doubt and sorrow : 
God provideth for the morrow." 

One there lives whose guardian eye 
Guides our humble destiny; 
One there lives, who, Lord of all, 
Keeps his creatures, lest they fall. 
Pass we blithely, then, the time, 
Fearless of the snare and lime, 
Free from doubt and faithless sorrow : 
God provideth for the morrow. 

Bishop Heb> r. 



WORSHIP. 



u 



9. THE CALL OF THE BIRDS. 

LIST to the birds that sing ! 
Pluck the primroses ; pluck the violets ; 
Pluck the daisies ; 
Sing their praises : 
Friendship with the flowers noble thoughts 
begets. 

Come forth and gather these sweet elves ; 
Come and gather them yourselves ; 
Learn of the gentle flowers whose worth is more 
than gold. 

Pierce into the bowers 
Of the gentle flowers, 
Which not in solitude 
Dwell, but with each other keep society, 
And with a simple piety 
A :q ready to be woven into garlands for the good, 
Or upon summer earth 
To die in virgin worth, 
Or to be strewn before the bride, 
And the bridegroom by her side. 
Come forth on Sundays, 
Come forth on Mondays, 
Come forth on any day! 



Worship the God of Nature in your childhood ; 
Worship him at your tasks with best endeavor; 
Worship him in your sports ; worship him ever. 



12 A GUILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Worship him in the wild wood ; 
Worship him amidst the flowers ; 
Pluck the buttercups, and raise 
Your voices in his praise. 

Edward Youl {altered). 



10. THE JOY OF WORSHIP. 

OH ! SWEETER than the marriage feast, 
'Tis sweeter far to me, 
To walk together to the church 
With a goodly company ! 

To walk together to the church, 

And all together pray, 
While each to his great Father bends, 
Old men and babes, and loving friends, 

And youths and maidens gay ! 

He prayeth well who loveth well 
Both man and bird and beast. 

He prayeth best who loveth best 

All things, both great and small ; 
For the dear God who loveth us, 

He made and loveth all. 

S. T. Coleridge. 



WORSHIP. 



11. WHAT RABBI JEHOSHA SAID. 

RABBI JEHOSHA used to say 
That God made angels every day 
Perfect as Michael and the rest 
First brooded in Creation's nest ; 
Whose only office was to cry 
" Hosanna ! " once, and then to die. 
If with life's sources to be blent, 
Be not return from banishment. 

Rabbi Jehosha had the skill 
To know that heaven is in God's will ; 
And doing that, though for a space, 
One heart-beat long, may win a grace 
As full of grandeur and of glow 
As princes of the chariot know. 

'Twere glorious, no doubt, to be 

One of the winged hierarchy; 

To burn, with seraphs, or to shine 

With cherubs deathlessly divine : 

Yet I, perhaps, poor earthly clod, 

Could I forget myself in*God ; 

Could I but find my nature's clew 

Simply, as birds and blossoms do ; 

And but for one rapt moment know 

'Tis heaven that comes, not we that go, — 



14 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Should win my place as near the throne 
As the pearl, angel of its zone, 
And God would listen 'rnid the throng 
For rny one breath of perfect song. 

J. E. LoiceJl 



12. THE BOY AND THE AX GEL. 

MORXIXG, evening, noon, and night, 
" Praise God ! " sang Theocrite. 
Then to his poor trade he turned, 
By which the daily bread was earned. 
Hard he labored, long and well ; 
O'er the work his boy's curls fell : 
But ever at each period 
He stopped, and sang, ; - Praise God ! " 
Then back again his curls he threw, 
And, cheerful, turned to work anew. 
Said Blaise, the listening monk, " Well done ! 
I doubt not thou art heard, my son, 
As well as if thy voice to-day 
Were praising God the Pope's great way. 
This Easter Day, the Pope at Rome 
Praises God from Peters dome.'' 
Said Theocrite, "Would God that I 
Might praise him that great way, and die ! " 

Xight passed, day shone, 
And Theocrite was gone. 



WORSHIP, 



With God a day endures alway; 

A thousand years are but a day. 

God said in heaven, " Xor day nor night 

Now brings the voice of my delight." 

Then Gabriel, like a rainbow's birth, 

Spread his wings, and sank to earth; 

Entered in flesh the empty cell; 

Lived there, and played the craftsman well 

And, morning, evening, noon, and night, 

Praised God in place of Theocrite. 

And from a boy to youth he grew: 

The man put off the striplings hue; 

The man matured, and fell away 

Into the sea -on of decay; 

And ever o'er. the trade he bent, 

And ever lived on earth content. - 

Go 1 said, "A praise is in my ear: 

There is no doubt in it, no fear. 

So sing old worlds, and so 

New worlds that from my footstool go; 

Clearer loves sound other ways : 

I miss my little human praise." 

Then forth sprang Gabriel's wings ; off fell 
The flesh disguise ; remained the cell. 
'Twas Easter Day: he flew to Rome, 
And paused above St. Peters dome. 
In the robing-room, close by 
The great outer gallery, 
With his holy vestments dight, 
Stood the new Pope, Theocrite : 



16 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



And all his past career 

Came back upon him clear, 

Since when, a boy, he plied his trade, 

'Till on his life the sickness weighed ; 

And in his cell, when death drew near, 

An angel in a dream brought cheer ; 

And, rising from the sickness drear, 

He grew a priest, and now stood here. 

To the east with praise he turned, 

And on his sight the angel burned. 

" I bore thee from thy craftsman's cell, 

And set thee here : I did not well. 

Vainly I left my angel sphere ; 

Vain was thy dream for many a year : 

Thy voice's praise seemed weak ; it dropped ; 

The chorus of creation stopped ! 

Go back, and praise again 

The early way, while I remain. • 
With that weak voice which we disdain, 
Take up creation's pausing strain. 
Back to the cell and poor employ ; 
Become the craftsman and the boy ! " 

Theocrite grew old at home : 

A new pope dwelt in Peter's dome. 

One vanished as the other died : 

They sought the good God side by side. 

R. Browning. 



WORSHIP. 



17 



13. THE CHILD AND THE ANGELS. 
1HE sabbath's sun was setting low 



" Our Father," breathed a voice below, — 
" Father who art in heaven." 

Beyond the earth, beyond the clouds, 
Those infant words were given : 

" Our Father," angels sang aloud, ■ — 
" Father who art in heaven." 

" Thy kingdom come," still from the ground 
That child-like voice did pray ; 

" Thy kingdom come," God's hosts resound 
Far up the starry way. 

"Thy will be done," with little tongue 

That lisping love implores ; 
" Thy will be done," the angelic throng 

Sing from the heavenly shores. 

" Forever," still those lips repeat 

Their closing evening prayer ; 
"Forever," floats in music sweet 

High 'midst the angels there. 




Amidst the clouds at even : 



Charles Swain, 



18 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



14. THE CHILD AND THE DOVE. 

THERE sitteth a dove so white and fair, 
All on the lily spray, 
And she listeth how to Jesus Christ 

The little children pray. 
Lightly she spreads her friendly wings, 

And to heaven's gate hath sped, 
And unto the Father in heaven she bears 
The prayers which the children have said. 

And back she comes from heaven's gate, 

And brings — that dove so mild — 
From the Father in heaven who hears her speak 

A blessing on every child. 
Then, children, lift up a pious prayer : 

It hears whatever you say, — 
That heavenly dove so white and fair, 

All on the lily spray. 

Fredriha Bremer ( Trans, by Mary Howitt). 



WORSHIP. 



19 



2. 

ASPIRA TIOJV. 



I. 

OLORD ! thou hast searched me and known 
me. 

Thou knowest my resting and my rising ; 

Thou understandest my thoughts afar off. 

Thou watchest my path and my lying-down, 

And art acquainted with all my ways. 

Before the word is on my tongue, 

Behold, O Lord ! thou knowest it altogether. 

Thou besettest me behind and before, 

And lay est thine hand upon me. 

Whither shall I go from thy Spirit, 

And whither shall I flee from thy presence ? 

If I ascend into heaven, thou art there ; 

If I make my bed in the under- world, behold! 

thou art there. 
If I take the wings of the morning, 
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea ; 
Even there shall thy hand lead me, 
And thy right hand shall hold me. 
If I say, Surely the darkness will cover me, 
Even the night shall be light about me. 



20 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Yes, the darkness hideth not from thee, 
But the night shineth as the day : 
The darkness and the light are both alike to thee. 
How precious to me are thy thoughts, O God ! 
How great is the sum of them ! 
If I should count them, they would outnumber 
the sand. 

When I awake, I am still with thee. 
Search me, O God ! and know my heart ; 
Try me, and know my thoughts ; 
And see if there be any evil way in me ; 
And lead me in the way everlasting. 

p. 

I will extol thee, my God, my King ; 

I will praise thy name for ever and ever. 

Every day will I bless thee, 

And praise thy name for ever and ever. 

Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised : 

His greatness is unsearchable. 

The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion ; 

Slow to anger, and rich in mercy. 

The Lord is good to all, 

And his tender merjcies are over all his works. 

The Lord upholdeth all that fall, 

And raiseth up all that are bowed down. 

The eyes of all wait upon thee, 

And thou givest them their food in due season. 

Thou openest thine hand, 

And satisfiest the desire of every living thing. 



WORSHIP. 



21 



The Lord is just in all his ways, 
And merciful in all his works. 
The Lord is nigh to all that call upon him, — 
To all that call upon him in truth. 
He meets the desire of them that fear him ; 
He heareth their cry, and helpeth them. 
The Lord preserve th all those that love him : 
Let all men bless his holy name for ever and 
ever. 

III. 

Praise ye the Lord. 
Praise the Lord, O my soul ! 
I will praise the Lord as long as I live ; 
I will sing praises to my God while I have my 
being. 

He made heaven and earth ; 

The sea, and all that is therein. 

He keepeth truth forever ; 

He maintain eth the cause of the oppressed ; 

He giveth food to the hungry ; 

He setteth free the prisoners ; 

He openeth the eyes of the blind ; 

He raiseth them that are bowed down ; 

He loveth the good ; 

He defend eth the stranger ; 

He relieveth the fatherless and the widow ; 

He gathereth together the exiles ; 

He healeth the broken in heart, 

And bindeth up their wounds. 



22 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



He lifteth up the lowly ; 

He casteth the wicked down to the ground. 

He covereth the heavens with clouds ; 

He causeth grass to grow on the mountains. 

He giveth to the beast his food ; 

He delighteth not in the strength of the horse ; 

He taketh not pleasure in the power of a man : 

The Lord taketh pleasure in those that love him, 

In those that trust in his mercy. 

Great is the Lord, and mighty in power; 

His understanding is infinite. 

IV. 

Bless the Lord, O my soul ! 
O Lord, my God ! thou art very great ; 
Thou art clothed with glory and majesty ; 
Thou coverest thyself with light as w T ith a gar- 
ment. 

lie spreadeth out the heavens like a curtain ; 
He layeth the beams of his chambers in the 

waters ; 

He maketh the clouds his chariot; 
He rideth on the wings of the wind ; 
He maketh the winds his messengers ; 
The flaming lio;!itnin2;s are his ministers. 
He sendeth forth the springs in brooks ; 
They run among the mountains ; 
They give drink to all the beasts of the forest : 
Near them the birds of heaven have their habi- 
tation. 



WORSHIP. 



23 



He causeth grass t$ spring up for cattle, 
And herbage for the service of man. 
The mighty trees are full of sap : 
There the birds have their nests. 
He set the moon to mark the seasons : 
The sun knoweth when to go down. 
He maketh darkness, and it is night, 
When all the beasts of the forest go forth : 
The young lions roar for prey, 
And seek their food from God. 
The sun ariseth : they retire, 
And lie down in their dens. 
Man o'oeth forth to his labor until the evening. 
All creatures look up to thee 
To give them their food in due season. 
Thou gives* it to them : they take it. 
Thou openest thine hand : they are satisfied with 
good. 

Thou hidest thy face : they are confounded. 
Thou takest away their breath : they die, 
And return to the dust. 

Thou sendest forth thy Spirit ; they are created : 

And thou renewest the face of the earth. 

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live ; 

I will sing praise to my God while I have being. 

V. 

Bless the Lord, O my soul ! 

And all that is within me, bless his holy name. 

Bless the Lord, 0 my soul ! 

And forget not all his benefits : 



24 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Who forgiveth all thine iniquities ; 

Who healeth all thy diseases ; 

Who saveth thy life from destruction ; 

Who crown eth thee with loving-kindness and ten- 
der mercies. 

The Lord is merciful and gracious. 

Slow to anger, and rich in mercy. 

He hath not dealt with us according to our sins, 

'Nov requited us according to our iniquities. 

As high as are the heavens above the earth, 

So great is his mercy to them that trust him. 

As far as the east is from the west, 

So far hath he removed our transgressions froni 
us. 

Even as a father pitieth his children, 

So the Lord pitieth them that trust Mm. 

As for man, his days are as grass : 

As a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. 

The wind passes over it, and it is gone ; 

And its place shall know it no more : 

But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to 

everlasting, 
And his goodness to children's children. 
Bless the Lord, ye his angels, — 
Ye mighty ones that do his commands ; 
Bless the Lord, all ye his hosts, — 
Ye servants of his that do his pleasure ; 
Bless the Lord, all his works ; 
Bless the Lord, O my soul ! 



WORSHIP. 



25 



VI. 

The Lord is my shepherd : I shall not want. 
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures ; 
He leadeth me beside the still waters ; 
He refresheth my heart ; 
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness 
For his name's sake. 
"When I walk through the dark valley, 
1 fear no evil ; for thou art with me : 
Thy crook and thy staff they comfort me. 
Thou preparest a table for me in sight of my ene- 
mies ; 
My cup runneth over. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the 
days of my life, 

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. 

vn. 

The heavens declare the glory of God ; 
The firmament showeth the work of his hands. 
Day uttereth wisdom unto day, 
And night showeth knowledge unto night. 
They have no speech nor language ; 
Their voice is not heard : 
Yet their sound goeth forth to all the earth, 
And their words to the ends of the world. 
The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the 
soul ; 



26 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



The precepts of the Lord are sure, making wise 
the simple ; 

The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the 
heart ; 

The commandments of the Lord are pure, enlight- 
ening the eyes ; 

The service of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; 

The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous. 

Oh ! cleanse thou me from secret faults ; 

Keep back thy children from presumptuous sins. 

May the words of my mouth and the meditation 
of my heart 

Be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength 
and my redeemer ! 

VIII. 

I will lift up my eyes to the hills, 
From whence cometh my help. 
My help cometh from the Lord, 
Who made heaven and earth. 
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved : 
He that keepeth thee will not slumber ; 
Behold, he that keepeth us will never slumber nor 
sleep. 

The Lord is our keeper ; 

The Lord is our shade on the right hand. 

The sun shall not smite us by day, 

Nor the moon by night. 

The Lord shall preserve us from all evil ; 

He shall preserve our souls. 



WORSHIP. 



The Lord shall preserve our going-out and our 
coming-in 

From this time forth, and even for evermore. 
IX. 

The Lord is my light and my safety : 

Whom shall I fear ? 

The Lord is the strength of my life : 

Of whom shall I be afraid ? 

When tempters come upon me to destroy me, 

They stumble and fall. 

Though an army should encamp about me, 

My heart should not fear ; 

Though war should rise against me, 

In God would I trust. 

One thing I have desired of the Lord, — 

That I will seek for, — 

That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all 

the days of my life ; 
That I may behold the beauty of the Lord, and 

see his truth. 
For, in the time of trouble, he shall hide me in 

his tent ; 

In a corner of his tent he shall hide me ; he shall 

set me on a rock. 
Then shall my head be lifted up above my enemies. 
Therefore will I bring him sacrifices of joy : 
I will sing, I will sing praises unto the Lord. 
Hear, O Lord ! when I cry to thee with my heart; 
Have pity upon me, and answer me. 



28 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



When thou saidst, " Seek ye my face," 

My heart said, " Thy face, Lord, I will seek." 

Hide not thy face from me ; 

Put me not away from thee. 

Thou hast been my help ; leave me not : 

Do not forsake me, O God of my safety! 

When my father and mother forsake me, 

Then the Lord will take me up. 

Teach me thy way, O Lord ! 

Lead me in a plain path. 

Let me not fall under the power of temptation ; 
For the tempters have risen up all about me. 
I must think I see the goodness of the Lord day 
by day. 

Wait on the Lord ; be of good courage : he shall 

strengthen thy heart. 
Wait, I say, on the Lord. 



X. 

I will bless the Lord at all times ; 

His praise shall be continually in my mouth. 

My soul shall exult in the Lord : 

The humble shall hear me, and be glad. 

Oh ! magnify the Lord with me ; 

Let us exalt his name together. - 

I sought the Lord, and he heard me ; 

He delivered me from all my fears. 

They looked up to him, and were lightened; 

And I was saved from shame. 



WORSHIP. 



29 



This poor soul cried, and the Lord heard ; 

He saved it from all its trouble. 

The angel of the Lord encamps about them that 

trust him, 
And protects them. 

Oh ! taste and see how good is the Lord. 
Blessed are they that trust him. 
Trust the Lord, ye children : 
They that trust him have no want. 
Come, ye children, hearken unto me : 
Thou wilt teach us the fear of the Lord. 
Who is it that loves life, — 
That loves the days for the good they bring ? 
Keep our tongue from evil, 
Our lips from speaking guile. 
Lead us from evil toward the good ; 
Make us love peace, and secure it. 
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous ; 
His ear is open to their cry. 
They cry, and the Lord heareth ; 
He delivereth them from all their troubles. 
The Lord is nigh to them that are of a broken 
heart ; 

He saveth such as are of a contrite spirit. 
Though the troubles of the good be many, 
The Lord delivereth him from them all. 
The Lord defendeth the lives of his servants, 
And none that trust in him shall be deserted. 



80 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XL 

As the stag panteth for the water-brooks, 

So pant our souls for thee, O God ! 

Our heart thirsteth for thee, the living God : 

When shall we come to the presence of God ? 

When I think of thee, I pour out my heart to thee, 

And we ours, with the voice of joy and praise, 

Why art thou cast down, O my soul ? 

Why art thou uneasy within us ? 

Hope ye in God : 

We shall vet see the light of his countenance. 
The Lord will show his loving-kindness in the 
daytime ; 

In the night, his song shall be in our mouth. 
Oh ! send out thy light and thy truth ; 
Let them lead us to thy holy hill. 
God is our refuge and strength, 
A very present help in trouble. 
We will not fear, though the earth be shaken. 
Though the mountains be carried into the sea, 
Though the waters of the sea roar, 
Though the mountains tremble with their rage. 
God is with us : 
We shall not be moved. 
God will help us, 
And that quickly. 
The mighty God is with us ; 
The ancient God is our safety. 
Be still, and you shall feel the presence of God. 
The mighty God is with us; the ancient God is 
our safety. 



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31 



XII. 

Praise waiteth for thee, O God ! 
Unto thee shall the vow be paid. 
O Thou that nearest prayer ! 
All people shall come to thee. 
Blessed are they whom thou choosest : 
They shall be satisfied with thy goodness. 
Thou art the confidence of all the ends of the 
earth, 

And of them that are far off on the sea. 
Thy strength setteth fast the mountains : 
They are girded with thy power. 
Thou stillest the noise of the seas ; 
Thou stillest the noise of the people. 
They that dwell in the desert have tokens of 
thee : 

Thou makest the morning and the evening sing. 

Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it ; 

Thou preparest corn in its season ; 

Thou waterest the hills ; 

Thou waterest the valleys ; 

Thou makest the ground soft with showers ; 

Thou blessest the tender shoot ; 

Thou crownest the year with thy goodness ; 

Thy footsteps are followed by plenty. 

The rain falls on the green spots in the desert; 

The little hills re-echo with joyfulness ; 

The pastures are covered with flocks ; 

The valleys are covered with corn ; 

They shout for gladness, 

They sing for joy. 



32 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XIII. 

Oh ! give thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good : 
For his mercy enclureth forever. 
Oh ! give thanks unto the God of gods ; 
For his mercy endureth forever. 
Oh ! give thanks unto the Lord of lords ; 
For his mercy endureth forever. 
To him who alone doeth great wonders ; 
For his mercy endureth forever. 
To him that by great wisdom made the heavens : 
For his mercy endureth forever. 
To him that stretched out the earth above the 
waters ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

To him that made great lights ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

The sun to rule by day ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

The moon and stars to rule by night ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

To him that gave to us our freedom; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

To him who hath carried us through the Red Sea ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

To him who gave us our land for a heritage : 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

To him who remembered us in our weakness ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

And hath redeemed us from our enemies ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 



WORSHIP. 



33 



Who giveth food to all creatures ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

Oh ! give thanks unto the God of heaven ; 

For his mercy endureth forever. 

XIV. 

Oh ! give thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good : 
For his mercy endureth forever. 
Let the elders say, 
His mercy endureth forever. 
Let all the children say, 
His mercy endureth forever. 
Let them that trust in the Lord say, 
His mercy endureth forever. 
I called on the Lord in my distress : 
The Lord answered me, and raised me up. 
The Lord is on my side : 
I will not fear what man can do unto me. 
The Lord taketh my part: 
Therefore I will not fear them that hate me. 
It is better to trust in the Lord 
Than to put confidence in men ; 
It is better to trust in the Lord 
Than to put confidence in princes. 
The Lord is my strength and song; 
He is become my safety. 
The right hand of the Lord is lifted ; 
The right hand of the Lord is mighty. 
The Lord doth try me sorely ; 
But he does not destroy. 
3 



34 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Open the gates of goodness, 

And I will thankfully go in. 

I will praise thee ; for thou hast heard me, 

And hast become my safety. 

God is the Lord, who hath showed us light. 

I will not bring to the Lord that which hath cost 

me nothing. 
Thou art my God, and I will praise thee : 
Thou art my God ; I will exalt thee. 
Oh ! give thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good : 
For his mercy endureth forever. 



WORSHIP. 



35 



15. GOD OF THE MOUNTAIN. 

GOD of the mountain, 
God of the storm, 
God of the flowers, 
.God of the worm, 
God of the darkness, 

God of the sun, 
God of the beautiful, 
God of each one, 
Breathe on our spirits thy love and thy healing; 
Teach us content with thy fatherly dealing ; 

Teach us to love thee, 
To love one another, brother his brother; 

And make us all free, — 
Free from the bondage of old superstition, 
Free from contempt of our comrade and neigh- 
bor. 

Help us each one to fulfil his true mission ; 
And teach us 'tis noble, 'tis godlike, to labor. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



16. PRAISE. 

KING of comfort, King of life, 
Thou hast cheered me ; 
And, when fears and doubts were rife, 

Thou hast cleared me. 
Not a nook in all my breast, 

But thou filFst it ; 
Not a thought that breaks my rest, 

But thou kill'st it. 
Day and night — not once a day — 

I will bless thee ; 
And, my heart, in new array 

I will dress thee. 
Not one minute in the year 

But I'll mind thee : 
As my seal and bracelet here 

I will bind thee. 
In thy word, as if in heaven, 

I will rest me ; 
And thy promise, till made even, 

There shall feast me. 
And if, dear Lord, when to thy board 

Thy child comes begging, 
He hath a flower, or to his power 

Some lesser offering, — 
When thou hast made thy beggar glad, 

And filled his bosom, 
Let him, though poor, drop at thy door 
His tiny blossom. 

Henry Vaughan. 



WORSHIP, 



37 



17. THE GOOD SHEPHERD. 



REGION of life and light ! 
Land of the good whose earthly toils are 
o'er! 

ISTo frost nor heat may blight 

Thy vernal beauty, fertile shore, 
Yielding thy blessed fruits forevermore ! 

There without crook or sling 
Walks the Good Shepherd. Blossoms white and 
red 

Round his meek temples cling ; 

And, to sweet pastures led, 
His own loved flock beneath his eye is fed. 

He guides, and near him they 
Follow delighted ; for he makes them go 

Where dwells eternal May, 

And heavenly roses blow 
Deathless, and gathered but again to grow. 

He leads them to the height 
Xamed of the infinite and long-sought good, 

And fountains of delight ; 

And where his feet have stood 
Springs up along the way their tender food ; 

And when in the mid skies 
The climbing sun has reached his highest bound, 

Reposing as he lies 

With all his flock around, 
He witches the still air with numerous sound. 



88 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



From his sweet lute flow forth 
Immortal harmonies, of power to still 

All passions born of earth, 

And draw the ardent will 
Its destiny of goodness to fulfil. 

Might but a little part, 
A wandering breath, of that high melody- 
Descend into my heart, 

And change it till it be 
Transformed and swallowed up, O Love! in thee,— 

Ah ! then my soul should know, 
Beloved, where thou liest at noon of day, 

And, from this place of woe 

Released, should take its way 
To mingle with thy flock, and never stray. 

W. C. Bryant [from the Spanish). 



18. THE GOD OF THE SEASONS. 

THESE as they change, Almighty Father, these 
Are but the varied God. The rolling year 
Is full of thee. Forth in the pleasing Spring 
Thy beauty walks, thy tenderness and love. 
Wide flush the fields ; the softening air is balm ; 
Echo the mountains round ; the forest smiles ; 
And every sense and every heart is joy. 
Then comes thy glory in the Summer months, 
With light and heat refulgent ; then thy sun 
Shoots full perfection through the swelling year. 



won ship. 



29 



And oft thy voice in dreadful thunder speaks ; 
And oft at dawn, deep noon, or falling eve, 
By brooks and groves, in hollow-whispering gales. 
Thy bounty shines in Autumn unconfined, 
And spreads a common feast for all that lives. 
In Winter, awful thou, with clouds and storms 
Around thee thrown, tempest o'er tempest rolled, 
Majestic darkness ! On the whirlwind's wing 
Riding sublime, thou bid'st the world adore, 
And humblest Mature with thy northern blast. 
Mysterious round ! What skill, what force divine, 
Deep felt, in these appear ! A simple train, 
Yet so delightful mixed, with such kind art, 
Such beauty and beneficence combined, 
That, as they still succeed, they ravish still. 
But wandering oft, with rude, unconscious gaze, 
Man marks not thee, — marks not the mighty 
Hand 

That ever busy wheels the silent spheres; 
Works in the secret deep ; shoots steaming thence 
The fair profusion that o'erspreads the Spring ; 
Flings from the sun direct the flaming day ; 
Feeds every creature ; hurls the tempest forth ; 
And, as on earth this grateful change revolves, 
With transport touches all the springs of life. 

Nature, attend; join every living soul 
Beneath the spacious temple of the sky, 
In adoration join, and ardent raise 
One general song. To Him, ye vocal gales, 
Breathe soft, whose Spirit in your freshness 
breathes : 



40 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Oh ! talk of Him in solitary glooms, 
Where o'er the rock the scarcely waving pine 
Fills the brown shade with a religious awe. 
His praise, ye brooks, attune, ye trembling rills, 
And let me catch it as I muse along. 
Ye headlong torrents, rapid and profound ; 
Ye softer floods, that lead the humid maze 
Along the vale ; and thou, majestic main, 
A secret world of wonders in thyself, — 
Sound His stupendous praise, whose greater voice 
Or bids you roar, or bids your roarings fall. 
Soft roll your incense, herbs, and fruits and flowers, 
In mingled clouds to Him whose sun exalts, 
Whose breath perfumes you, and whose pencil 
paints. 

Ye forests, bend ; ye harvests, wave to Him ; 
Breathe your still song into the reaper's heart, 
As home he goes beneath the joyous moon. 
Ye that keep watch in heaven, as earth asleep 
Unconscious lies, effuse your mildest beams. 
Great source of day, best image here below 
Of thy Creator, ever pouring wide 
From world to world the vital ocean round, 
On Nature write with every beam his praise. 
Bleat out afresh, ye hills ; ye mossy rocks, 
Retain the sound ; the broad, responsive low, ■ 
Ye valleys, raise : for the Great Shepherd reigns, 
And his unsuffering kingdom yet will come. 
Ye woodlands all, awake ; a boundless song 
Burst from the groves ; and when the restless day, 
Expiring, lays the warbling world asleep, 



WORSHIP. 



41 



Sweetest of birds, sweet nightingale, entrance 
The listening shades, and teach the night His 
praise. 

Ye chief, for whom the whole creation smiles, 
At once the head, the heart, the tongue of all, 
Crown the great hymn ! In swarming cities vast, 
Still sing the God of seasons as they roll. 
For me, when I forget the darling theme, 
Whether the blossom blows, the Summer ray 
Russets the plain, inspiring Autumn gleams, 
Or Winter rises in the blackening east, 
Be my tongue mute, my fancy paint no more, 
And, dead to joy, forget, my heart, to beat ! 

James Thomson. 



19. TO A SKYLARK. 

UP with me, up with me, into the clouds ! 
For thy song, lark, is strong ; 
Up with me, up with me into the clouds, 

Sin^ino* singing ! 
With clouds and sky about thee ringing, 
Lift me, guide me, till I find 
That spot which seems so to thy mind. 

I have walked through wildernesses dreary, 
And to-day my heart is weary : 
Had I now the wings of a fairy, 
Up to thee would I fly. 



42 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



There is madness about thee, and joy divine 

In that song of thine : 

Lift me, guide me, high and high, 

To thy banqueting-place in the sky. 



20. JOYOUS AS MORNING. 

THOU art laughing and scorning ; 
Thou hast a nest for thy love and thy rest: 
And, though little troubled with sloth, 
Drunken lark ! thou wouldst be loath 
To be such a traveller as I. 
Happy, happy liver, 

With a soul as strong as a mountain -river, 
Pouring out praise to the almighty Giver, 
Joy and jollity be with us both ! 
Alas! my journey, rugged and uneven, 
Through prickly moors and dusty ways must 
wind ; 

But hearing thee, or others of thy kind, 
As full of gladness, and as free of heaven, 
I, with my fate contented, will plod on, 
And hope for higher raptures when life's day is 
done. 

Wordsworth. 



WORSHIP. 



43 



21. ASPIRATIONS OF YOUTH. 

HIGHER, higher, will we climb, 
Up to the mount of glory, 
That our names may live through time 

In our country's story : 
Happy, when her welfare calls, 
He who conquers, he who falls. 

Deeper, deeper, let us toil 

In the mines of knowledge ; 
Nature's wealth and learning's spoil 

Win from school and college j 
Delve we there for richer gems 
Than the stars of diadems. 

Onward, onward, may we press, 

Through the path of duty : 
Virtue is true happiness ; 

Excellence, true beauty. 
Minds are of celestial birth : 
Make we, then, a heaven of earth. 

Closer, closer, let us knit 

Hearts and hands together, 
Where our fireside comforts sit 

In the wildest weather. 
Oh ! they wander wide who roam, 
For the joys of life, from home. 

J ames Montgomery. 



44 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



22. THOUGHTS OF HEAVEN. 

HIGH thoughts, 
They come and go 
Like the soft breathing of a listening maiden 

While round me flow 
The winds from woods and fields with glad- 
ness laden. 

When the corn's rustle on the ear doth come ; 
When the eve 5 s beetle sounds its drowsy hum ; 
When the stars, dewdrops of the summer sky, 
Watch oyer all with soft and loving eye, — 
While the leaves quiver 
By the lone river, 
And the quiet heart 

From depths doth call, 
And garners all, — 
Earth grows a shadow, 
Forgotten whole, 
And heaven lives 
In the blessed soul ! 

High thoughts ! 

They are with me 

When deep within the bosom of the fores 
Thy morning melody 
Abroad into the sky, thou, throstle, pourest 
When the young beams glance among the trees ; 
When on the ear comes the soft song of bees ; 



WORSHIP. 



When every branch has its own favorite bird, 
And songs of summer from each thicket heard; 
Where the owl flitteth, 
Where the roe sitteth, 
And holiness 

Seems sleeping there : 
While Nature's prayer 
Goes up to heaven 

In purity, 
Till all is glory 

And joy to me ! 

High thoughts ! 

They are my own 

When I am resting on a mountain's bosom, 
And see below me strown 

The huts and homes where humble virtues 
blossom. 

When I can trace each streamlet through the 
meadow ; 

When I can follow every fitful shadow ; 
When I can catch the winds among the corn, 
And see the waves along the forest borne ; 
Where blue-bell and heather 
Are blooming together, 
And far doth come 
The sabbath-bell 
O'er wood and fell, — 
I hear the beating 

Of Nature's heart : 
Heaven is before me ; 
God. thou art ! 



48 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

High thoughts ! 
They visit us 

In moments when the soul is dim and 
darkened ; 
They come to bless 

After the vanities to which we hearkened. 
When weariness hath come upon the spirit, — 
Those hours of darkness which we all inherit, — 
Bursts there not through a glint of warm sun- 
shine, 

A winged thought, which bids us not repine ? 
In joy and sadness, 
In mirth and gladness, 
Come signs and tokens : 
Life's angel brings 
Upon its wings 
Those bright communings 

The soul doth keep, — 
Those thoughts of heaven 
So pure and deep. 

Robert Nicoll. 



23. A SUPPLICATION. 

WILT Thou not visit me ? 
The plant beside me feels Thy gentle 
dew ; 

Each blade of grass I see, 
From Thy deep earth its quickening moisture 
drew. 



WORSHIP. 



47 



Wilt Thou not visit me ? 
Thy morning calls on me with cheering tone ; 

And every hill and tree 
Lend but one voice, — the voice of Thee alone. 

Come ; for I need Thy love 
More than the flower the dew, or grass the rain: 

Come, like Thy Holy Dove, 
And let me in Thy sight rejoice to live again. 

Yes, Thou wilt visit me : 
Nor plant nor tree Thine eyes delight so well, 

As when, from sin set free, 
Our spirits come with Thine in peace to dwell. 

Jones Very. 



24. THE SOUL'S CALM. 

WHEN winds are raging o'er the upper ocean, 
And billows wild contend with angry 
roar, 

'Tis said, far down beneath the wild commotion. 
That peaceful stillness reigneth evermore. 

Far, far beneath, the noise of tempests dieth, 
And silver waves chime ever peacefully ; 

And no rude storm, how fierce soe'er it flieth, 
Disturbs the sabbath of that deeper sea. 



48 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

So to the heart that knows Thy love, 0 Purest ! 

There is a temple sacred evermore, 
And all the Babel of life's angry voices 

Dies in hushed stillness at its peaceful door. 

Far, far away, the roar of passion dieth. 

And loving thoughts rise calm and peacefully ; 
And no rude storm, how fierce soe'er it flieth, 

Disturbs the soul that dwells, O Lord ! in thee* 

Mrs. H. B. Stowe. 



25. THE HEART'S PRAYER 
S down in the sunless retreats of the ocean 



Sweet flowers are springing no mortal can 



So deep in my soul the still prayer of devotion, 
Unheard by the world, rises silent to thee, 
My God ! silent to thee ; 
Pure, warm, silent to thee. 

As still to the star of its worship, though clouded, 

The needle points faithfully o'er the dim sea ; 
So dark when I roam, in this wintry world 
shrouded, 

The hope of my spirit turns trembling to thee, 
My God ! trembling to thee ; 
True, sure, trembling to thee. 




Thomas Moore. 



WORSHIP. 



49 



26. THE HYMN OF NATURE 

THE heavenly spheres to thee, 0 God ! 
Attune their evening hymn : 
All-vise, All-holy, thou art praised 

In song of seraphim. 
Unnumbered systems, suns, and worlds, 

Unite to worship thee ; 
While thy majestic greatness fills 
Space, time, eternity. 

Nature, a temple worthy thee, 

Beams with thy light and love, 
Whose flowers so sweetly bloom below, 

Whose stars rejoice above; 
Whose altars are the mountain-cliffs 

That rise along the shore ; 
Whose anthems, the sublime accord 

Of storm and ocean roar. 

Her sons; of gratitude is sung 

By Spring's awakening hours ; 
Her Summer offers at thy shrine 

Its earliest, loveliest flowers ; 
Her Autumn brings its golden fruits, 

In glorious luxury given ; 
While Winter's silver heights reflect 

Thy brightness back to heaven. 

Bowring. 

4 



50 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



27. GOD'S PRESENCE IX NATURE. 




HOU art, O God! the life and light 
Of all this wondrous world we see: 



Its glow by day, its smile by night, 
Are but reflections caught from thee. 
Where'er we turn, thy glories shine ; 
And all things fair and bright are thine. 

When Day with farewell-beam- delays 
Among the opening clouds of even, 
And we can almost think we gaze 
Through golden vistas into heaven, 
Those hues that make the sums decline 
So soft, so radiant, Lord, are thine. 

When youthful Spring around us breathes, 
Thy Spirit warms her fragrant sigh ; 
And every flower the Summer wreathes 
Is born beneath thy kindling eye. 
Where'er we turn, thy glories shine ; 
And all things fair and bright are thine. 

Thomas Moon 



won ship, 



51 



23. PEAISE TO NATURE'S GOD. 
AUDED be Thy name forever, — 



JLJ Thou of life the guard and river ! 
Thou who slumberest not, nor sleepest, 
Blest are they Thou kindly keepest. 
God of stillness and of motion, 
Of the rainbow and the ocean, 
Of the mountain, rock, and river, 
Lauded be thy name forever ! 

God of evening's peaceful ray, 
God of every dawning day 
Rising from the distant sea, 
Breathing of eternity, — 
Thine the flaming sphere of light, 
Thine the darkness of the night : 
God of life, that fade shall never, 
Glory to thy name forever! 



29. OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN. 




OLY, holy, holy Lord ! 

In the highest heaven adored, 



Dwelling with the loving heart, 
Truly thou our Father art. 
From thy love our spirits came : 
Father, hallowed be thy name ! 




James Hogg. 



52 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



In our spirits may we feel 
Filial love, thy Spirit's seal : 
Then, In all our want or wealth, 
Joy or sorrow, pain or health, 
Still our prayer shall be the same, — 
# " Father, hallowed be thy name ! " 

Living near to thee alwajf, 
Thy command may we obey ; 
Gladly by thy hand be led ; 
Seek from thee our daily bread ; 
While our daily prayer we frame, — 
" Father, hallowed be thy name ! " 



30. GOD IS LOVE, AND LOVE ALONE. 
I" ORD and Father, great and holy, 



JLJ Fearing nought, we come to thee ; 
Fearing nought, though weak and lowly ; 

For thy love has- made us free. 
By the blue sky bending o'er us, 

By the green earth's flowery zone, 
Teach us, Lord, the angel-chorus, — 
"Thou art love, and love alone." 

Though the worlds in flame should perish, 

Suns and stars in ruin fall, 
Trust in thee our hearts should cherish ; 

Thou to us be all in all. 




WORSHIP. 



And, though heaven thy name is praising, 
Seraphs hymn no sweeter tone 

Than the strain our hearts are raising, — 
a Thou art love, and love alone ! " 

F. W. Far 



31. FOUNTAIN OF DIVINE LOYE. 
ET us sing the praise of Love ! 



Bringing on its blessed wino;s 
Life to all created things. 
Wheresoe'er its light is shed, 
Sorrow lifts its drooping head; 
And the tears of grief that start 
Turn to sunshine in the heart. 

Love Divine ! all things are thine ; 

Every creature seeks thy shrine ; 

And thy boundless blessings fall 

With an equal love on all. 

Let us sing the praise of Love, 
Everywhere, — around, above ; 
Watching with its starry eyes 
From the blue of boundless skies ; 
Heeding when the lowly call ; 
Mindful of a sparrow's fall ; 
Writing on the flower-wreathed sod, 
" God is love, and love is God." 




Holy Spirit, Heavenly Dove, 



54 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Love Divine ! all things are thine ; 
Every creature seeks thy shrine ; 
And thy boundless blessings fall 
"With an equal love on all. 

Let us sing the praise of Love, 
Fairest of all things above : 
How its blessed sunshine*Ties 
In the light of loving eyes ! 
And, when words are all too weak, 
How its deeds of mercy speak ! 
They who learn to love aright 
Pass from darkness into light. 

Love Divine ! all things are thine ; 

Every creature seeks thy shrine; 

And thy boundless blessings fall 

With an equal love on all. 

Let us sing the praise of Love ! 
Shepherd of the lambs above, 
Nothing can forbid that we 
Come in trusting love to thee. 
Fold us closely to thy heart ; 
Make us of thyself a part : 
All the heaven our souls have known 
We have found in thee alone. 

fcLove Divine!, all things are thine; 

Every creature seeks thy shrine ; 

And thy boundless blessings fall 

With an equal love on all. 

Manual of A. J. Davis. 



WORSHIP. 



32. THE UNIVERSAL PRAYER. 

FATHER of all, in every age, 
In every clime, adored 
By saint, by savage, or by sage, 
Jehovah, Jove, or Lord ; 

Thou great First Cause, least understood, 

Who all my sense confined 
To know but this, — that thou art good, 

And that myself am blind, — 

What conscience dictates to be done, 

Or warns me not to do, 
This teach me more than hell to shun, 

That more than heaven pursue. 

If I am right, thy grace impart 

Still in the right to stay ; 
If I am wrong, oh ! teach my heart 

To find that better way. 

Save me alike from foolish pride, 

Or impious discontent ; 
At aught thy wisdom has denied, 

Or aught thy goodness lent. 

Teach me to feel another's woe, 

To hide the fault I see : 
The mercy I to others show, 

That mercy show to me. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



This day be bread and peace my lot : 

All else beneath the sun 
Thou know'st if best bestowed or not ; 

And let thy will be done. 

To Thee — whose temple is all space ; 

Whose altar, earth, sea, skies — 
One chorus let all beings raise, 

All Xature's incense rise ! 



33. EVENING PRAYER. 

BEFORE I close my eyes to-night, 
Let me myself these questions ask : 
Have I endeavored to do right, 
Nor thought my duty was a task ? 

Have I been gentle, lowly, meek, 

And the small voice of conscience heard? 

When passion tempted me to speak, 
Have I repressed the angry word ? 

Have I with cheerful zeal obeyed 
What my kind parents bade me do, 

And not by word or action said 

The thing that was not strictly true ? 



WORSHIP 



hi 



Iii hard temptation's troubled hour, 

Then have I stopped to think, and pray 

That God would give my soul the power 
To chase the sinful thought away? 

O Thou who seest all my heart ! 

Wilt thou forgive, and love me still ? 
Wilt thou to me new strength impart, 

And make me love to do thy will ? 

Mrs. Follen. 



34. THE DAY AND THE NIGHT ARE THINE. 

FADING, still fading, the last beam is shining. 
Father in heaven ! the day is declining : 
Thine is the darkness, as thine is the light : 
We trust thee by day, and we trust thee by 
night. 

From the fall of the shade till the morning bells 
chime, 

Shield us from danger, and guard us from crime. 
Father of mercy, oh ! hear thou our prayer. 

Father in heaven, oh ! hear when we call, 
Thou the Protector and Saviour of all. 
Fainting and feeble, we trust in thy might : 
In doubting and darkness, thy love be our light ! 



58 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

Let us sleep on thy breast while the night-taper 
burns, 

And wake in thine arms when the morning 
returns. 

Father of mercies, oh ! hear thou our prayer. 



35. AN EVENING SONG. 

LORD, a happy child of thine, 
Patient through the love of thee, 
In the light, the life divine, 
Lives and walks in liberty. 

Leaning on thy tender care, 
Thou hast led my soul aright : 
Fervent was my morning prayer, 
Joyful is my song to-night. 

O my Father, Guardian true ! 
All my life is thine to keep : 
At thy feet my work I do ; 
In thine arms I fall asleep. 

Anna L. Waring. 



WORSHIP. 



59 



36. REST. 



HE daylight is fading o'er earth and o'er 



ocean ; 

The sun has gone down o'er the slumbering sea; 
And now, in the hush of life's fitful commotion, 
We lift our tired spirits, blest Father! to thee. 

Oh ! when our feet stumble upon the dark moun- 
tains, 

Or sink in the stormy and treacherous wave, 
Or seek in the desert in vain for the fountains, 
Be near in the darkness to help and to save. 

And oft as the tumult of life's heaving billow 
Shall toss our frail bark, driving wild o'er night's 
deep, 

Let thy guarding wing be stretched over our 
pillow, 

And shield us from evil, though death watch 
our sleep. 



37. SONG OF THE NIGHT. 
ATHER supreme, thou high and holy One ! 



-i- To thee we bow, 

Xow, when the burden of the day is gone, — 





Devoutly now. 



60 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



From age to age unchanging, still the same, 

All good thou art : 
Hallowed forever be thy reverend name 

In every heart ! 

When the glad morn upon the hills was spread. 

Thy smile was there : 
Now, as the darkness gathers overhead, 

We feel thy care. 

Night spreads her shade upon another day 

Forever past : 
So o'er our faults, thy love, we humbly pray, 
A veil may cast. 

Silence and calm, o'er hearts by earth distrest, 

Now sweetly steal : 
So every fear that struggles in the breast 

Shall faith conceal. 

Thou, through the dark, wilt watch above our 
sleep 

With eye of love ; 
And thou wilt wake us when the sunbeams leap 

The hills above. 

Oh ! may each heart its gratitude express 

As life expands, 
And find the triumph of its happiness 

In thy commands ! 



worship. 



61 



38. VESPER HYMN. 
TOW, on sea and land descending, 



-L i Brings the night its peace profound : 
Let our vesper hymn be blending 

With the holy calm around. 
Soon as dies the sunset glory, 

Stars of heaven shine out above, 
Telling still the ancient story,— 
Their Creator's changeless love, 

Now, our wants and burdens leaving 

To His care who cares for all, 
Cease we fearing, cease we grieving ; 

At his touch our burdens fall. 
As the darkness deepens o'er us, 

Lo ! eternal stars arise ; 
Hope and Faith and Love rise glorious, 

Shining in the Spirit's skies. 



39. UPWARD. 
PWARD, where the stars are burning, 



vJ Silent, silent, in their turning 
Round the never-changing pole ; 
Upward, where the sky is brightest ; 
Upward, where the blue is lightest, — 




Samuel Longfellow. 




Lift I now my longing soul. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Far above that arch of gladness, 
Far beyond those clouds of sadness, 

Are the many mansions fair : 
Far from pain and sin and folly, 
In that palace of the holy, 

I would find my mansion there. 

Where the glory brightly dwell eth ; 
Where the new song sweetly swelleth, 

And the discord never comes ; 
Where life's stream is ever laving, 
And the palm is ever waving, — 

That must be the home of homes. 

Blessing, honor, without measure, 
Heavenly riches, earthly treasure, 

Lay we at His blessed feet. 
Poor the praise that now we render : 
Loud shall be our voices yonder 

When before his throne we meet. 

Rev, H. Bonar. 



40. A CHILD'S HYMN. 

JESUS, gentle shepherd, lead me 
To the stream that softly flows ; 
In thy pastures guide and feed me, 
Where each lamb thy calling knows. 



WORSHIP. 



63 



There no evil thing can find me ; 

I may lie upon thy breast : 
There no crooked paths shall wind me; 

All shall lead to peace and rest. 

Jesus, gentle shepherd, hear me ; 

Come and call me one of thine : 
Let me walk henceforth so near thee, 

All thy footsteps shall be mine. 

Agatha Ernest 



64 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



T R UST. 

1. THE LOVE OF GOD. 
LL things that are on earth shall wholly pass 



Except the love of God, which shall live and last 
for aye. 

The forms of men shall be as they had never 
been ; 

The blasted groves shall lose their fresh and ten- 
der green ; 

The birds of the thicket shall end their pleasant 
song, 

And the nightingale shall cease to chant the even- 
ing long ; 



The kine of the pasture shall feel the dart that 
kills, 

And all the fair white flocks shall perish from the 
hills ; 

The goat and antlered stag, the wolf and the 



The wild boar of the wood and the chamois cf 
the rocks, 




fox, 



WORSHIP. 



65 



And the strong and fearless bear, in the trodden 

dust shall lie ; 
And the dolphin of the sea, and the mighty 

whale, shall die. 
And. realms shall be dissolved, and empires be no 

more ; 

And they shall bow to death who ruled from 

shore to shore ; 
And the great globe itself, so the holy writings 

tell, 

With the rolling firmament, where the starry 

armies dwell, 
Shall melt with fervent heat: they shall all pass 

away, 

Except the love of God, which shall live and last 
for aye. 

W. C. Bryant {from the Spanish). 



2. TRUSTING LOVE. 

CHILDREX of heaven, love ye the merciful 
Father; 

Wish what the Holy One wishes, as not from 

fear, but affection : 
Fear is the virtue of slaves ; but the heart that 

loveth is willing. 
Perfect was before God, and perfect is love, and 

love only. 

Lovest thou God as thou oughtest ? then lovest 
thou likewise thy brethren. 

5 



66 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

Bears not each human figure the Godlike stamp 

on his forehead ? 
Readest thou not in his face thine origin ? Is he 

not sailing, 

Lost like thyself, on an ocean unknown ? and is 
he not guided 

By the same stars that guide thee ? Why sh ouldest 
thou hate, then, thy brother? 

Hateth he thee, forgive ! For 'tis sweet to stam- 
mer one letter • 

Of the Eternal's language : on earth it is called 
forgiveness. 

Knowest thou Him who forgave with the crown 

of thorns round his temples ; 
Earnestly prayed for his foes, for his murderers ? 

Say, dost thou know him ? 
Ah ! thou confessest his name : so follow likewise 

his example. 
Think of thy brother no ill, but throw a veil over 

his failings ; 

Guide the erring aright : for the good, the heav- 
enly Shepherd 

Took the lost lamb in his arms, and bore it back 
to its mother. 

This is the fruit of love ; and it is by its fruits 
that we know it. 

Tegner {trans, by Longfellow), 



WORSHIP. 



07 



3. THE GUIDES. 



1AKE ye henceforth, as guides in the paths 



Prayer, with her eyes raised to heaven, and Inno- 
cence, gem of your childhood. 

Innocence, child beloved, is a guest from the 
world of the blessed ; 

Beautiful, and in her hand a lily : on life's roaring- 
billows 

Swings she in safety : she heedeth them not ; in 

the ship she is sleeping. 
Calmly she gazes around in the turmoil of men 

in the desert : . 
Angels descend and minister to her; she herself 

knoweth 

Nought of her glorious attendance, but follows 

faithful and humble, — 
Follows as long as she may her friend. Oh ! do 

not reject her ; 
For she cometh from God, and she holdeth the 

keys of the heavens. 




Tegner (trans, by LonofeUow). 



68 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



4. PATIENCE. 

THE night is mother of the day ; 
The winter, of the spring ; 
And ever upon old decay 

The greenest mosses cling. 
Behind the cloud the starlight lurks, 

Through showers the sunbeams fall ; 
For God, who loveth all his works, 
Has left his hope with all. 

J. G. Whittkr. 



5. SONG OF FAITH. 

PT^HE day is quenched, and the sun is fled : 
JL God has forgotten the world! 
The moon is gone, and the stars are dead : 
God has forgotten the world ! 

Day will return with a fresher boon : 

God will remember the world ! 
Night will come with a newer moon : 

God will remember the world ! 

Evil is only the slave of good ; 

Sorrow, the servant of joy; 
And the soul is mad that refuses food 

Of the meanest in God's employ. 



WOE SHIP. 



69 



The fountain of joy is fed by tears, 
, And love is lit by the breath of sighs : 
The deepest griefs and the wildest fears 
Have holiest ministries. 

Strong grows the oak in the sweeping storm ; 

Safely the flower sleeps under the snow ; 
And the farmer's hearth is never warm 

Till the cold wind starts to blow. 

Day will return with a fresher boon : 

God will remember the world ! 
Night will come with a newer moon : 

God will remember the world ! 

J. G. Holland. 



6. SONG OF CONFIDENCE. 

FOR summer's bloom and autumn's blight, 
For bending wheat and blasted maize, 
For health and sickness, Lord of light 
And Lord of darkness, hear our praise ! 

We trace to thee our joys and woes, 
To thee of causes still the Cause : 

We thank thee that thy hand bestows, 
We bless thee that thy love withdraws. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



We bring no sorrows to thy throne ; 

We come to thee with no complaint : 
In providence thy will is clone ; 

And that is sacred to the saint. 

Through every blessed day and night 
We raise to thee our grateful voice : 

For what thou cloest, Lord, is right ; 
And, thus believing, we rejoice. 

J. G. Holland. 



7. SONG OF TRUST. 

LIFE evermore is fed by death 
In earth and sea and sky; 
And, that a rose breathe its breath, 
Something must die. 

The oak-tree, struggling with the blast, 

Devours its fatheivtree, 
And sheds its leaves, and drops its mast, 
That more may be. 

The milk-white heifer's life must pass 

That it may fill your own, 
As passed the sweet life of the grass 
She fed upon. 



WOE SHIP. 



71 



From lowly woe springs lordly joy ; 

From humbler good, diviner : 
The greater life must aye destroy 
And drink the minor. 

For angels wait on Providence, 

And mark the sundered places, 
To graft with gentlest instruments 



8. SONG OF FORTUNE. 
TTRX, Fortune, turn thy wheel, and lower the 



J- proud ; 
Turn thy wild wheel through sunshine, storm, or 
cloud : 

Thy wheel and thee we neither love nor hate. 

Turn, Fortune, turn thy wheel with smile or 
frown ; 

With that wild wheel we go not up or down : 
Our hoard is little ; but our hearts are great. 

Smile and we smile, the lords of many lands; 
Frown and we smile, the lords of our own hands : 
For man is man, and master of his fate. 

Turn, turn thy wheel above the staring crowd : 
Thy wheel and thou are shadows of the cloud ; 
Thy wheel and thee we neither love nor hate. 



The heavenly graces. 



J. G. Holland. 




Alfred Tennyson. 



72 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



9. THE LITTLE TREE. 

A LITTLE tree stood up in the wood 
In .bright and dirty weather ; 
And nothing but needles it had for leaves 

From top to bottom together. 
The needles stuck about, 
And the little tree spoke out : — ^ 

" My companions all have leaves 

Beautiful to see : 
While I've nothing but these needles ; 

No one touches me. 
Might I have my fortune told, 
All my leaves should be pure gold." 

The little tree's asleep by dark, 

Awake by earliest light ; 
And now its golden leaves you mark : 

There was a sight ! 
The little tree says, " Now I'm set high : 
No tree in the wood has gold leaves but I." 

But now again the night came back : 
Through the forest there walked a Jew, 

With great thick beard and great thick sack, 
And soon the gold leaves did view. 

He pockets them all, and away does fare, 

Leaving the little tree quite bare. 



WORSHIP 



The little tree speaks up distressed, — 
" Those golden leaves how I lament ! 

I'm quite ashamed before the rest, 
Such lovely dress to them is lent. 

Might I bring one more wish to pass, 

I would have my leaves of the clearest glass." 

The little tree sleeps again at dark, 

And wakes with the early light. 
And now its glass leaves you may mark : 

There was a sight ! 
The little tree says, "Now I'm right glad : 
No tree in the wood is as brightly clad." 

There came up now a mighty blast, 

And a furious gale it blew ; 
It swept among the trees full fast, 

And on the glass leaves it flew : 
There lay the leaves of glass 
All shivered on the grass ! 

The little tree complains, — 

" My glass lies on the ground : 
Each other tree remains 

With its green dress all sound. 
Might I but have my wish once more, 
I would have of those good green leaves good stor 

Again asleep is the little tree, 

And early wakes to the light : 
He is covered with green leaves fair to see ; 

He laughs outright, 



74 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



And says, " I am now all nicely dressed, 
Nor need be ashamed before the rest." 

And now, with udders full, 

Forth a wild she-goat sprung, 
Seeking for herbs to pull, 

To feed her young. 
She sees the leaves, nor makes much talk, 
But strips all clear to the very stalk ! 

The little tree again is bare, 

And thus to himself he said : 
" No longer for any leaves I care, 

Whether green or yellow or red. 
If I had but my needles again, 
I would nevermore scold or complain." 

The little tree slept sad that night, 

And sadly opened his eye : 
He sees himself in the sun's first light, 

And laughs as he would die. 
And all the trees in a roar burst out ; 
But the little tree little cared for their shout. 

What made the little tree laugh like mad ? 

And what set the rest in a roar ? 
In a single night, soon back he had 

Every needle he had before ! 
And everybody may see them such : 
Go out and look ; but do not touch. 
Why not, I pray ? 
They prick, some say. 

N. L. Frothingham {from the German of Riickert). 



WORSHIP. 



75 



10. A DOUBTING HEART. 

WHERE are the swallows fled? 
Frozen and dead, 
% Perchance, upon some bleak and frozen shore. 
O doubting heart ! 
Far over purple seas, 
They wait in sunny ease 
The balmy southern breeze 
To bring them to their northern home once more. 

Why must the flowers die ? 
Prisoned they lie 

In the cold tomb, heedless of tears or rain. 
O doubting heart ! 
They only sleep below 
The soft white ermine snow, 
While winter winds shall blow, 

To breathe and smile upon you soon again. 

The sun has bid his rays 
These many days : 

Will dreary hours never leave the earth ? 
O doubting heart ! 
The stormy clouds on high 
Veil the same sunny sky 
That soon (for Spring is nigh) 

Shall wake the Summer into golden mirth. 



76 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Fair hope is dead, and light 

Is quenched in night. 
What sound can break the silence of despair ? 
O doubting heart ! 

Thy sky is overcast ; 

Yet stars shall rise at last, 

Brighter for darkness past, 
And angels' silver voices stir the air. 

Adelaide A. Procter, 



11. THANKFULNESS. 

I THANK thee, O my God ! who made 
The earth so bright, # 
So full of splendor and of joy, 
Beauty and light ; 
-So many glorious things are here, 
Noble and right ! 

I thank thee, too, that thou hast made 

Joy to abound ; 
So many gentle thoughts and deeds 

Circling us round, 
That, in the darkest spot on earth, 

Some love is found. 

I thank thee more that all our joy 
Is touched with pain ; 



WORSHIP. 



77 



That shadows fall on brightest hours ; 

That thorns remain ; 
So that earth's bliss may be our guide, 

And not our chain. 

For thou who knowest, Lord, how soon 

Our weak heart clings, 
Hast given us joys tender and true, 

Yet all with wings ; 
So that we see gleaming on high 

© © © 

Diviner things. 

I thank thee, Lord, that thou hast kept 

The best in store : 
We have enough, yet not too much 

To long for more, — 
A yearning for a deeper peace 

Not known before. 

I thank thee, Lord, that here our souls, 

Though amply blest, 
Can never find, although they seek, 

A perfect rest ; 
Nor ever shall, until they lean 

On Jesus' breast. 

Adelaide A. Procter, 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



12. ONE BY ONE. 

ONE by one the sands are flowing, 
One by one the moments fall : 
Some are coming, some are going ; 
Do not strive to grasp them all. 

One by one thy duties wait thee ; 

Let thy whole strength go to each : 
Let no future dreams elate thee ; 

Learn thou first what these can teach. 

One by one, bright gifts from heaven, 
Joys are lent thee here below : 

Take them readily when given ; 
Ready, too, to let them go. 

One by one thy griefs shall meet thee : 

Do not fear an armed band ; 
One will fade as others greet thee, — 

Shadows passing through the land. 

Do not look at life's long sorrow ; 

See how small each moment's pain : 
God will help thee for to-morrow ; 

To each day begin again. 

Every hour that fleets so slowly 

Has its task to do or bear: 
Luminous the crown, and holy, 

If thou set each gem with care. 



WORSHIP. 



79 



Do not linger with regretting, 

Or for passing hours despond ; 
Nor, the daily toil forgetting, 

Look too eagerly beyond. 

Hours are golden lints, God's token, 
Reaching heaven ; but one by one 

Take them, lest the chain be broken 
Ere the pilgrimage be done. 

Adelaide A. Procter. 



13. THE ARK AXD DOVE. 

THERE was a noble ark, 
Sailing o'er waters dark, 
And wild around : 
Not one tall tree was seen, 
Nor flower, nor leaf of green ; 
All, all, was drowned. 

Then a soft wing was spread, 
And o'er the billows dread 

A meek dov^ flew ; 
But, on that shoreless tide, 
No living thing she spied 

To cheer her view. 



80 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



So to the ark she fled, 
With weary, drooping head, 

To seek for rest. 
God is thy ark, my love : 
Thou art the tender dove ; 

Fly to his breast. 

Mrs. Sigourney. 



14. GLADNESS. 

IS this a time to be cloudy and sad, 
When our mother Nature laughs around : 
When even the deep blue heavens look glad, 
And gladness breathes from the blossoming 
ground ? 

There are notes of joy from the hang-bird and 
vrreii, 

And the gossip of swallows through all the sky ; 
The ground-squirrel gayly chirps by his den, 
And the wilding bee hums merrily by. 

The clouds are at play in the azure space, 
And their shadows at play on the bright green 
vale ; 

And here they stretch to the frolic chase, 
And there they roll on the easy gale. 



WORSHIP. 



Si 



There's a dance of leaves in that aspen bower ; 
There's a titter of wind in that beechen tree ; 
There's a smile on the fruit, and a smile on the 
flower, 

And a laugh from the brook that runs to the sea. 

And look at the broad-faced Sun ! how he smiles 
On the dewy earth that smiles in his ray, 
On the leaping waters and gay young isles ! 
Ay, look ! and he'll smile thy gloom away. 

W. C. Bryant. 



15. THOU, GOD, SEEST ME. 

THROUGH all the busy daylight, through all 
the quiet night, 
Whether the stars are in the sky or the sun is 

shining bright, 
In the nursery, in the parlor, in the street, or on 
the stair, 

Though I may seem to be alone, yet God is always 
there. 

Whatever I may do, 

Wherever I may be, 
Although I see him not, 

Yet God sees me. 

6 



8*2 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

He knows each word I mean to speak before the 

word is spoken ; 
He knows the thoughts within my heart, although 

I give no token : 
When I am naughty, then I grieve my heavenly 

Father's love ; 
And, every time I really try, he helps me from 

above. 

Whatever I may do, 

Wherever I may be, 
Although I see him not, 

Yet God sees me. 



I have kind and tender parents ; I have many 

loving friends : 
But none love me as God loves me ; and all that's 

good he sends : 
I will walk as God shall lead me, while the sun is 

in the sky ; 

And lay me down, and sleep in peace beneath his 
watchful eye. 

Whatever I may do, 

Wherever I may be, 
Although I see him not, 
Yet God sees me. 

Hymns for Mothers and Children. 



WORSHIP. 



63 



16. GOD'S LOVE IN THE FLOWERS. 
OD might have made the earth bring forth 



The oak-tree and the cedar-tree, 
Without a flower at all. 

He might have made enough* enough, 

For every want of ours, 
For luxury, medicine, and toil ; 

And yet have made no flowers. 

The clouds might give abundant rain, 

The nightly dews might fall ; 
And the herb that keepeth life in man 

Might yet have drunk them all. 

Then wherefore, wherefore, were they made, 

And dyed with rainbow light, 
Ail fashioned with supremest grace, 

Upspringing day and night, — 

Springing in valleys green and low, 

And on the mountain high, 
And in the silent wilderness, 

Where no man passes by? 

Our outward life requires them not : 
Then wherefore had they birth ? 

To minister delight to man ; 
To beautify the earth ; 




Enough for great and small, 



84 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



To comfort man ; to whisper hope 
Whene'er his faith is dim : 

For He that careth for the flowers 
Will care much more for him; 



Mary Bbwitt. 



17. MINIS TEEING SPIRITS. 
HY come not spirits from the realms of 



To visit earth as in the days of old, — 
The times of sacred writ and ancient story ? 
Is heaven more distant? or has earth grown 



To Bethlehem's air was their last anthem given, 
When other stars before the One grew dim ? 

Was their last presence known in Peter's prison, 
Or where exalting martyrs raised their hymn? 

And are they all within the veil departed ? 

There gleams no wing along the empyrean now; 
And many a tear from human eyes has started 

Since angel touch has calmed a mortal brow. 

]STo : earth has angels, though their forms are 
moulded 

But of such clay as fashions all below: 




glory 



cold? 



WORSHIP. 



85 



Though harps are wanting, and bright pinions 
^ folded, 

We know them by the love-light on their brow. 

I have seen angels by the sick one's pillow ; 
Theirs were the soft tone and the soundless 
tread : 

Where smitten hearts were drooping like the wil- 
low, 

They stood "between the living and the dead." 

And if my sight, by earthly dimness hindered. 
Beheld no hovering cherubim in air, 

I doubted not: for spirits know their kindred; 
They smiled upon the wingless watchers there. 

There have been angels in the gloomy prison, 
In crowded halls, by the lone widow's hearth ; 

And, where they passed, the fallen have uprisen, 
The giddy paused, the mourner's hope had 
birth. 

Oli ! many a spirit walks the world unheeded, 
That, when its veil of sadness is laid down, 

Shall soar aloft with pinions unimpeded, 
And wear its glory like a starry crown. 

The Disciples' Hymn-book. 



86 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION 



18. CONTENTMENT. 

MY niiiicl to me a kingdom is ; 
Such perfect joy therein I find 
As far exceeds all earthly bliss 

That world affords, or grows by kind : 
Though much I want what most men have, 
Yet doth my mind forbid me crave. 

Content I live : this is my stay, — 
I seek no more than may suffice ; 
I press to bear no haughty sway :■ 

Look! what I lack my mind supplies. 
Lo ! thus I triumph like a king, 
Content with that my mind doth bring. 

I see how plenty surfeits oft, 

And hasty climbers oft do fall; 
I see how those that sit aloft 

Mishap doth threaten most of all : 
They get, they toil, they spend with care ; 
Such cares my mind could never bear. 

I laugh not at another's loss, 

I grudge not at another's gain ; 
~No worldly wave my mind can toss ; 
I brook that is another's pain. 
I fear no foe, I scorn no friend, 
I dread no death, I fear no end. 



WORSHIP. 



87 



Some have too much, yet still they crave ; 

I little have, yet seek no more : 
They are but poor, though much they have ; 
And I am rich, with little store. 
They poor, I rich ; they beg, I give ; 
They lack, I lend ; they pine, I live. 

I wish not what I have at will ; 

I wander not to seek for more ; 
I like the plain, I climb no hill ; 
In greatest storm I sit on shore, 
And laugh at those that toil in vain 
To get what must be lost again. 
This is my choice ; for why ? I find 
No wealth is like a quiet mind. 

Ancient Songs. 



19. PEACE. 

MY soul, there is a country 
Afar beyond the stars, 
Where stands a winged sentry, 

All skilful in the wars : 
There, above noise and danger, 

Sweet Peace sits crowned with smiles; 
And One born in a manger 
Commands the beauteous files. 



88 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



He is thy gracious friend, 

And (O my soul, awake !) 
Did in pure love descend 

To die here for thy sake. 
If thou canst but get thither, 

There grows the flower of peace, 
The rose that cannot wither, 

Thy fortress and thy ease. 
Leave, then, thy foolish ranges ; 

For none can thee secure, 
But One who never changes, — 



Thy God, thy Life, thy Cure ! 



20. THE ANGELS' GREETING. 

" Hark ! they whisper ! angels say, 
1 Sister spirit, come away! ' " — Pope. 

OME to the land of peace ; 



Come where the tempest hath no longer 



The shadow passes from the soul away, 
The sounds of weeping cease. 

Fear hath no dwelling there. 
Come to the mingling of repose and love, 
Breathed by the silent spirit of the dove 

Through the celestial air. 



Henry Vaughan. 




sway, 



WORSHIP. 



89 



Co me to the bright and blest ; 
And crowned forever 'midst that shining band, 
Gathered to heaven's own wreath from every 
land, 

Thy spirit shall find rest. 

Thou hast been long alone. 
Come to thy mother : on the sabbath-shore, 
The heart that rocked thy childhood, back once 
more 

Shall take its wearied one. 

In silence wert thou left. 
Come to thy sisters: joyously again, 
All the home-voices, blent in one sweet strain, 

Shall oreet their lonsc bereft. 

Over thine orphan-head 
The storm hath swept as o'er a willow's bough. 
Come to thy father : it is finished now ; 

Thy tears have all been shed. 

In thy divine abode, 
Change finds no pathway, memory no dark trace, 
And, O bright victory ! death by love no place. 

Come, spirit, to thy Cod ! 

Mrs. Hemans. 



90 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



21. THE BETTER LAND. 

I HEAR thee speak of the better land ; 
Thou calPst its children a happy band. 
Mother, oh! where is that radiant shore? 
Shall we not seek it, and weep no more ? 
Is it where the flower of the orange blows, 
And the fire-flies dance through the myrtle- 
boughs ? " 
" Not there, not there, my child ! " 

" Is it where the feathery palm-trees rise, 
And the date grows ripe under sunny skies ? 
Or 'midst the green islands of glittering seas, 
Where fragrant forests perfume the breeze, 
And strange bright birds on their starry wings 
Bear the rich hues of all glorious things? " 

"Not there, not there, my child ! " 

" Is it far away in some region old, 
Where the rivers wander o'er sands of gold; 
Where the burning rays of the ruby shine, 
And the diamond lights up the secret mine, 
And the pearl gleams forth from the coral strand: 
Is it there, sweet mother, that better land ? " 

"Not there, not there, my child! 

" Eye hath not seen it, my gentle boy; 
Ear hath not heard its deep songs of joy ; 



WORSHIP. 



91 



Dreams cannot picture a world so fair ; 
Sorrow and death may not enter there : 
Time doth not breathe on its fadeless bloom; 
For beyond the clouds, and beyond the tomb, 
It is there, it is there, my child ! " 

Mrs. Bemans. 



22. WE SCAT TEE SEEDS. 

WE scatter seeds with careless hand, 
And dream we shall ne'er see them 
more ; - 
But for a thousand years 
Their fruit appears * 
In weeds that mar the land 
Or healthful store. 

The deeds we do, the words we say, 
Into still air they seem to fleet ; 

We count them ever past : 

But they shall last ; 
In the dread judgment, they 

And we shall meet. 

Lyra Tanocentiam. 



92 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



23. SHATTERED IDOLS. 

0 SHATTERED idols, framed of fragile glass, 
We thought were jewels! Yet the day 
may come 

When every fragment which lies shattered now 
May turn to sapphires in the land of rest. 
We raise a palace through a waste of years, 
And think its walls are crystal in the sun 
Of this world's glory, flashing for an hour : 
We look again, and see it was but ice 
Which we have lived in, thawing fast away ; 
At every burning grasp it melts the more. 
Blessed be he who leaves the treacherous hope, 
And into heavenly crystal turns the thaw T ! 

Monro, 



24. THE FLIGHT OE TIME. 

FAINTLY flow, thou falling river, 
Like a dream that dies away ; 
Down to ocean gliding ever, 

Keep thy calm unruffled way : 
Time with such a silent motion 
Floats along on wings of air 
To eternity's dark ocean, 

Burying all its treasures there. 



WORSHIP. 



93 



Roses bloom, and then they wither; 

Cheeks are bright, then fade and die ; 
Shapes of light are wafted thither, 

Then, like visions, hurry by 
Quick as clouds at evening driven 

O'er the many-colored west ; 
Years are bearing us to heaven, 

Home of happiness and rest. 

Percival. 



25. CONTENTMENT. 

npHINK'ST thou the steed that restless roves 
-i- O'er rocks and mountains, fields and 

groves, 

With wild, unbridled bound, 
Finds fresher pasture than the bee 
On thymy bank or vernal tree, 
Intent to store her industry 

Within her waxen round ? 

Think'st thou the fountain, forced to turn 
Through marble vase or sculptured urn, 

Affords a sweeter draught 
Than that which in its native sphere, 
Perennial, undisturbed, and clear, 
Flows, the lone traveller's thirst to cheer, 

And wake his grateful thought ? 



94 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Think'st thou the man whose mansions hold 
The worldling's pomp and miser's gold 

Obtains a richer prize 
Than he who, in his cot at rest, 
Finds heavenly peace a willing guest, 
And bears the promise in his breast 

Of treasure in the skies ? 

Mrs. Sigourney. 



26. SOME MURMUR. 

SOME murmur, when their sky is clear 
And wholly bright to view, 
If one small speck of dark appear 

In their great heaven of blue ; 
And some with thoughtful love are filled 

If but one streak of light, 
One ray of God's good mercy, gild 
The darkness of their night. 

In palaces are hearts that ask 

In discontent and pride 
Why life is such a dreary task, 

And all good things denied ; 
And hearts in poorest huts admire 

How love has in their aid 
(Love that not ever seems to tire) 

Such rich provision made. 

Trench. 



WORSHIP. 



95 



27. THOU CAM'ST NOT, 

THOU cani'st not to thy place by accident ; 
It is the very place God meant for thee : 
And, shouldst thou there small scope for action 
see, 

Do not for this give room to discontent. 
Nor let the time thou owest to God be spent 
In idly dreaming how thou mightest be, 
In what concerns thy spiritual life, more free 
From outward hinderance or impediment ; 
For presently this hinderance thou shalt find 
That without which all goodness were a task 
So slight, that virtue never could grow strong : 
And wouidst thou do one duty to his mind, 
The Imposer's, ever-burdened, thou shalt ask, 
And own thy need of grace to help, ere long. 

Trench. 



28. PASSING AWAY. 




HE snow-flake that glances at morn on Kai- 
lassa, 



Dissolved by the sunbeam, descends to the plain ; 
There mingling with Ganges, it flows to the ocean, 
And, lost in its waters, returns not again. 



96 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



On the rose-leaf at sunrise bright glistens the 

dewdrop, 

That, in vapor exhaled, falls in nourishing rain ; 
Then, in rills back to Ganges, through green fields, 
meanders, 

Till onward it Hides to the ocean ag;am. 

A snow-flake still whitens the peak of Kailassa ; 
But the snow-flake of yesterday flows to the 
main : 

At dawning a dew-drop still hangs on the rose- 
leaf; 

But the dew-drop of yesterday comes not again. 

The soul that is freed from the bondage of 
Nature 

Escapes from illusion of joy and of pain ; 

And, pure as the flame that is lost in the sunbeam, 

Ascends unto God, and returns not again : 

It comes not, and goes not, and comes not again. 

Eastern Poem. 



PART n. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



RULES FOR THE GOOD LIFE. 

Let us now repeat together the Rules of the 
Good Life, 

1. To revere God and his piloses with a filial 
trust. 

2. To love God, the heavenly Father, with filial 
love. 

3. To love man, the child of God, with broth- 
erly affection. 

4. To study the works of God, desiring to dis- 
cover their beauties. 

5. To make duty, or the will of God, our first 
object, and the only title to happiness. 

6. To delay and neglect nothing that we ought 
to do. 

7. To keep our bodies clean, our clothes tidy, 
things about us in order, our appearance simple 
and neat. 

7 97 



98 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



8. To keep our blood pure by exercise in the 
open air ; since, by means of the air, we live. 

9. To avoid too much eating and drinking, too 
much pleasure and excitement, and every thing 
that is excess. 

10. To be kind to all, willing to please and to 
be pleased ; not out of good nature only, but from 
a sense of duty. 

11. To avoid slander, gossip, and foolish talking, 
as unworthy of creatures whom God has made, 
and placed in so fair a world. 

12. To set examples of perfect truthfulness in 
word and deed. 

13. To be large-hearted; trying at all times to 
think and do generous and noble things, with- 
out being afraid of rebuke or ridicule. 

14. To be modest, and willing to submit to cor- 
rection and censure. 

15. To inflict no pain on any creature for the 
sake of a pleasure. 

16. To shrink from no pain which it is needful 
that we should bear. 

17. To help the weak, teach the simple, cheer 
the sad, visit the sick, encourage the hopeless, 
bear with the dull, excuse the ignorant, forgive 
the erring, and pray for the wicked. 

18. To cultivate and encourage the free spirit 
of inquiry, to censure narrowness of mind, to 
struggle against prejudice, to cherish the disposi- 
tion to believe in new truths, and to give welcome 
to thoughts not known before. 



TEE GOOD LIFE. 



99 



19. To respect the rights of others; to regard 
the happiness of others as equally important with 
our own ; and to feel in our hearts the desire aud 
the purpose that all people, so far as we know 
them or can serve them, may have all the oppor- 
tunities, privileges, and enjoyments they are able 
to receive. 

20. To look up with admiration to all men and 
women who lead noble lives, though they may be 
misunderstood and hated ; to honor those who are 
persecuted for righteousness' sake or for truth's 
sake ; and to revere especially those who stand 
alone, with the rich and the great and the fashion- 
able against them ; never to speak evil of such as 
are disliked and despised, and never to take the 
part of the strong against the weak. 

21. To keep before the mind the images of 
great and good men and women who have lived 
and died for their fellow-creatures, and especially 
to keep in view the character and example of 
Jesus. 

22. To keep before the mind the hope of our 
immortality, and the faith in our perfect happi- 
ness at last. 

23. To keep before the mind the belief in our 
power to improve ourselves in every way, to 
soften our manners, tame our passions, curb our 
tempers, and grow more and more in loveliness. 

24. To keep before our minds the truth that 
the child is father to the man, and that we 



100 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



cannot hope to be good men or good women 
unless we are good boys and good girls. 

25. Never to forget that good habits are more 
easily formed in childhood than in manhood or 
womanhood, and that the proper time to begin to 
form them is the present moment. 

26. To be patient and steadfast in cultivating 
holy desires, the spirit and the habit of prayer; lift- 
ing the heart to the Father, and imploring his help, 
in full faith that there is no real strength but that 
which comes from the Source of all good. 



PUNISHMENTS. 

Questions and Answers. 

fiAN you tell me what punishment is? 

Punishment is pain inflicted on wrong- 
doing. 

Is all pain punishment ? 

Yes ; for, if there were no wrong-doing, there 
would be no pain. There must be violation of 
law before there can be suffering. 

Is all punishmen t pain ? 

Not all ; for sometimes, when the punishment 
for wrong-doing is most terrible, it is not felt : the 
very power to feel is taken away. One may do 
wrong so much, that he does not know at last 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



1C1 



whether he does wrong or not. Then he does not 
suffer; but his punishment is worse than if he did. 

Is he happy, then, because he does not suffer f 

He may be happy as evil spirits are happy, but 
not with the sweet happiness of those, who, in 
lo.ving God, enjoy his love. 

Who punishes us when we do wrong ? 

God ; who has so made us, that we must suffer 
whenever we break his laws. 

Does God like to make us suffer ? 

Oh, no ! He makes us suffer in order that we 
may escape worse suffering. Pain is a kindly 
warning not to disobey. 

God, then, punishes his children because he 
loves them ? 

Yes : he is not angry with us when we do ill, 
but only anxious that we shall do well. 

Will pain follow wrong-doing as long as we 
live ? 

Even after death, in another world, pain will 
follow disobedience till disobedience ends. When 
we do the will of God wholly, we shall be happy. 

Is it certain that nobody can escapje punish- 
ment for wrong -doing f 

We feel that it is certain. We believe that no 
one ever did wrong without being the worse for 
it. But now we wish to ask you some questions 
in our turn. We should like to learn how people 
are punished for particular sins. 

'Will you tell us, then, what is the punishment 
for neglect of duty ? 



102 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



The punishment for neglect of duty is, that by 
and by you cease to love duty, then to care for it, 
then to know what it is. When you no longer 
respect duty, you no longer respect yourself. You 
become weak and foolish, and fond of silly plea- 
sures that do nothing but harm. 
i What is the punishment of uncleanliness ? 

The punishment of uncleanliness is loss of 
health, loss of beauty, loss of attractiveness, and 
the dislike of those who might love you. 

What is the punishment of neglecting air and 
exercise ? 

It is weakness, dulness, loss of vigor, lowness 
of spirits, and ill health. 

What is the punishment for putting off till to- 
morrow ichat should be done to-day? 

It is an increase of work and trouble ; vexa- 
tion ; loss of time and opportunity ; mortification ; 
the displeasure of those whom we disappoint, 
annoy, and perhaps distress ; and, at last, great 
weakness and sorrow. 

What is the punishment for over eating and 
drinking ? 

It is headache, dyspepsia, heart-burn, flttfness 
of brain, stupidity of feeling and purpose, lazi- 
ness; in the end, perhaps, violent pain from sick- 
ness, with little pity to soothe it ; possibly early 
death; always the mortification of your friends : 
every body despises the glutton, and loathes the 
drunkard. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



103 



What is the punishment for unkind and un- 
gentle manners? 

It is the dislike of your companions, ill-will, 
resentment, a bad reputation in society, and 
sometimes an unkind disposition. They whose 
manners are unkind will be thought unkind, and 
may really become so. 

What is the punishment for fault-finding? 

It is censure from everybody ; it is general dis- 
trust and hate; it is loss of power to see the 
amiable qualities in people, and the loss of 
power to make them see your own ; it is an 
nnamiable temper and a bad heart. 

What is the punishment for untruthfulness? 

It is distrust, suspicion, alienation, shame, and 
disgrace. The liar is always abhorred. He who 
lies in order to make others believe what is not 
true finds in a little while that people suspect him 
of lying even when he tells them what is true. 
He may at last lose the power to know what is 
true from what is false. 

What is the pmnishment for selfishness? 

It is being left alone with one's self. 

What is the punishment for carelessness of the 
opinions of those about us ? 

It is a surly temper and social ill-will. 

What is the punishment for shrinking from 
necessary pain ? 

It is the increase of the pain, timidity, weak- 
ness, and regret. Every pain avoided is a worse 
pain incurred. 



104 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



What is the punishment for neglecting those 
loho need our aid, — the poor, the sick* the sad? 

It is cold-heartedness and neglect when we 
ourselves may be sad, sick, or poor. 

What is the punishment for meanness? 

More meanness, and the contempt of all who 
know what generosity is. The mean man loses 
one of the keenest joys of existence, — the joy of 
making others happy by his gifts. 

What is the punishment for malicious teasing ? 

The hatred of those you tease. 

What is the punishment for telling a secret ? 

Loss of confidence on the part of those who 
have secrets to confide. 

What is the punishment for neglect to cultivate 
a lone of the beautiful? 

Loss of the joy and spirit that beauty imparts. 
What is the pimishment for irreverence ? 

Insensibility to the worth of holy and divine 
things; want of seriousness in character; coarse- 
ness of mind, and hardness of feeling ; a trifling 
and flippant heart. 

What is the punishment for neglecting studies? 

Ignorance and incapacity. 
What is the punishment for avoiding society ? 

Loneliness, shyness, sadness ; want of power to 
converse or sympathize with others ; poverty of 
thought and feeling. 

What is the punishment for neglecting wor- 
ship ? 

It is that the great object of worship disappears, 



THE QOOD LIFE. 



105 



and we are left alone, without the feeling of a God 
above us, a spirit within us, or a heaven beyond. 

What is the punishment for disobeying the 
voice of conscience ? 

It is that conscience dies, the sense of evil is 
lost, and the power of distinguishing evil from 
good is taken away. 

What is the punishment for indulging in pro- 
fane or impure words or thoughts ? 

It is that the heart becomes unclean, and loves 
unclean things. The impure in heart will be im- 
pure in life ; and they who take the Holy Name 
in vain will be in danger of going without help 
from the Holy Spirit. 

What is the punishment for neglecting to learn 
GocPs will as taught in the Scriptures, in cdl holy 
books, and in the lessons of Providence ? 

It is that God's will is not known; and, when 
God's will is nbt known, it cannot be loved or 
obeyed. Then self-will and passion rule us. The 
greatest of all duties is to study God's will wher- 
ever it may be found, but chiefly where it is writ- 
ten the most clearly, — in the words of the New 
Testament. 



106 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



* f Reward is the pleasure that goes with 
doing well. 

Is all pleasure reward? 

All healthy pleasure is reward. Happiness is 
reward, joy is reward, and goodness is the best 
reward. 

Is all reward pleasure ? 

Yes : it is. We do not always feel punishment; 
but we do always feel reward. God never lets 
us miss a feeling of joy. 

Is goodness always rewarded? 

Always ; and the reward is great in proportion 
to the goodness. The best people have the most 

joy. 

But ice have often been unhappy because ice 
were good ; because we told the truth, or refused 
to play truant, or would not do mischief w ith our 
companions^ or would not hide a fault. 

Yes ; but, if you were really good, you must 
have felt a joy in being good, much greater than 
any pleasure you might have had from not being 
good, — the joy of a good conscience and a pure 
heart. 

But will you tell us what rewards we may 



REWARDS. 



Children ask Teacher. 




THE GOOD LIFE, 107 

expect for different kinds of goodness ? What 
reward may ice look for if we worship God, and 
trust him ? 

You will feel that God is your friend, near you 
always, caring for you, protecting you in trouble 
and in temptation. 

What will be our reward if toe cultivate a love 
of the beautiful ? 

You will see beauty wherever you are; you 
will love it more and more, and it will be a great 
delight to you. 

What will be our reward if we make duty our 
first object? 

You will respect yourselves, and you will be 
respected by others ; you will be strong and 
cheerful ; you will be spared disappointment and 
reproach. 

What will be o ur reioard if ice are clean and 
neat in our persons and clothes ? 

You will do much towards keeping well, and 
making yourselves attractive to those about you. 

What will be our reward if ice are temperate 
in eating and drinking ? 

You will be strong, active, cheerful. You will 
be likely to lead a longer, happier, and more use- 
ful life. 

What will be our reward if we are hearty and 
kind in our manners ? 

You will receive kindness in return ; you will 
make people happy about you ; you will be like 
sunshine and fresh air at home and in society; 



108 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



you will create good-will, and you will have a 
peaceful heart. 

What will be our reward if we are thoughtful 
and gentle in our judgments of others ; if. toe 
speak no ill^ are not slanderers or fault-finders f 
You will know that you have, or deserve to 
have, no enemies. You will be innocent of 
hatreds and quarrels. The good will love you ; 
the bad will be grateful to you for seeing some 
thing in them that is good. You will correct & 
good deal of injustice, and will save many people 
from abuse and shame. 

What will be our reward if vie are true in icord 
and deed? 

If you are wisely and lovingly true, true in the? 
spirit of charity, you will certainly be trusted, 
honored, beloved, by all people. Nothing is so 
much respected, and by so many, as truth. Truth 
makes amends for want of beauty, want of talent> 
want of personal charm ; it gives interest to the 
uninteresting ; it makes the simple delightful ; and 
it fills the heart with an innocent gladness which 
no words will express. 

What will be our reward if we give up every 
kind of pleasure that causes pain either to our 
felloio-creatures or to animals? 

You will enjoy the great satisfaction of nevei 
causing pain. Your pleasures will bring no sting 
with them, and leave no sting behind. Your fel- 
low-creatures will think of you sweetly, and you 
will be able to enjoy the greatest pleasures most. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



What will be our reward, if for duty, for truth, 
for love, for kindness, ice meet danger, endure 
pain, bear misunderstanding and slander ? 

You will have the reward that nobleness always 
brings ; namely, nobleness, — the best reward there 
is or can be. You will be respected, loved, hon- 
ored ; but, more than this, you will respect your- 
self, and you will feel that all the noble, the high- 
minded, the true-hearted, are your friends. By 
bearing pain for yourself, you become brave to 
bear more pain ; by bearing pain for others, you 
fulfil the Golden Rule in the very best way. 

What will be our reward, if toe are open- 
minded, loilling to receive new opinions, and 
ready to accept new truths? , 

You will receive new truths. Your minds will 
become large, generous, sincere. You will even 
be much happier for your trust in the Great Wis- 
dom that never leaves the sincere heart alone in 
the dark. 

What wiU be our reward if we stand up 
bravely for the equal rights of all people just 
because they are our fellow-creatures, — for the 
sake of justice ? 

You will have the respect of all who do the 
same ; you will be a terror to those who are un- 
just; and you will get the gratitude of the little 
and the weak and the abused whom you try to 
help. 

What will be our reward if we cultivate good 
habits while ice are young? 



110 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



You will be good men and women by and by. 

What will be our reward if we listen to the 
teaching of the wise, and try to live by it ? 

You will get wisdom, and wisdom will be 
power and peace to you. 



LESSONS IN THE GOOD LIFE, 
I. 

MY child, if thou come to serve the Lord, 
prepare thyself for discipline. 
Let me set my heart aright, and constantly en- 
dure, and not be fretful in time of trouble. 

Cleave unto him, and never leave him, and 
thou shalt be always the richer. 

Whatsoever is brought upon us may we take 
cheerfully, and be patient when we are made to 
suffer. 

For gold is tried in the fire ; and good men, in 
the fires of adversity. 

We will believe in God, and he will help us ; 
Ave will order our ways aright, and trust in him. 

Ye that trust the Lord, wait for his mercy; and 
go not aside, lest ye fall. 

We will trust the Lord and believe him, that 
our reward may not fail. 



THE GOOD LIFE. Ill 

Ye that trust the Lord, hope for good, and for 
everlasting joy and mercy. 

Did ever any trust in the Lord, and was con- 
founded ? or did any abide in him, and was for- 
saken ? or who was ever despised that called on 
hirn? 

The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, 
long-suffering and very pitiful, and forgiveth sins, 
and saveth in time of sorrow. 

Woe be to fearful hearts and faint hands ! 

Woe be to us if we are faint-hearted and be- 
lieve not ! 

They that trust the Lord will not disobey him, 
and they that love him will keep his ways. 

They that trust the Lord will try to do that 
which pleases hirn, and they that love him will 
be kept by his truth. 

II. 

TTEAR me, O children! and do as I advise 
JLJL you, that ye may be safe. 

Tell us, thy children, what thou wouldst have 
us to do. 

Seek not death by an evil life, and bring not 
ruin on yourselves by your, own foolishness. 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowl- 
edge : only the foolish despise instruction. 

Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the 
man that getteth understanding; : 

The merchandise of it is better than the mer- 



112 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



cliandise of silver; and the gain of it, than fine 
gold. 

She is more precious than rubies; and all the 
things that can be desired are not to be compared 
to her. 

Length of days is in her right hand ; and in her 
left hand, riches and honor. 

Her ways .ire ways of pleasantness, and all her 
paths are peace. 

She is a tree of life to them that lay hold on 
her ; and happy is every one that keepeth her. 

Wisdom is a loving spirit; it fills the world; 
it looks into the heart, and knows the unspoken 
thought. 

Therefore we will beware of murmuring, and 
keep from slander, and abstain from lying. 

The hope of the foolish is like dust, that is blown 
away by the wind. 

It is like a thin frost, that is driven away by the 
storm. 

It is like smoke, that is scattered by a tempest. 

It is like the remembrance of a stranger who 
passes us in the street. 

Beauty and pride and riches and pleasures 
pass away like shadows on the ground ; 

Like ships, that leave no trace of their keel in 
the waters of the sea ; 

Like birds flying through the air, that leave no 
mark of their wings behind them ; 

Like arrows, that cut the air, which comes to- 
gether again, and shows no sign of their flight. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



113 



The good live forevermore. The Most High 
cares for them ; 

His right arm shall cover them ; and from the 
Lord's hand they shall receive a beautiful crown. 

Wisdom is easily seen by them that love her, 
and found by them that seek her. 

To them that desire her, she makes herself 
known first. 

They that seek her early find her sitting at 
their doors. 

She goes about seeking for those that are wor- 
thy of her. She meets them kindly in the street ; 
she comes to them in every thought. 

The beginning of wisdom is the desire for 
goodness ; and the root of goodness is love. 

Love keeps her laws; and to keep her laws is 
to be immortal. 

Wisdom is kind, steadfast, sure, free from care, 
powerful, and all-seeing. 

She is the breath of the power of God, a pure 
influence from the Almighty. 

In all ages, entering into pure hearts, she makes 
them friends of God and children. 

For God loveth all who dwell with wisdom. 

She is more beautiful than the sun, and 
brighter than all the stars; she is sweeter than 
the light of day. 

For after this cometh night ; but no night 
comes to wisdom. 

8 



114 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



III. 

HEAR me, O children! Honor your father 
and your mother ; for the Lord hath given 
the father honor among his children, and hath 
bestowed authority on the mother over her 
sons. 

He that honoreth his father, and is a comfort 
to his mother, is obedient to the Lord. 

Honor thy father and mother both in word and 
in deed, that a blessing may come upon thee from 
them. 

For the father's blessing is a safeguard ; but the 
mothers curse is a plague. 

My children, help your father in his age, and 
grieve him not as long as he lives. 

To relieve our father will never be forgotten. 

If his understanding fail, be patient with him ; 
and despise him not in his weakness. 

In helping our father, we build ourselves up in 
virtue, and in the respect and love of all parents 
and children. 

My child, defraud not the poor of his living, 
and make not the needy to wait long. 

We will not make the hungry ones sorrowful, 
nor will we provoke those that are sad. 

Add not more trouble to a heart that is vexed, 
and refuse not aid to one that is in need. 

We will not reject the prayer of the afflicted, 
nor turn away from the poor. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



115* 



Turn not away your eyes from the needy, and 
give him no occasion to curse you ; 

For, if he curse us in the bitterness of his heart, 
his prayer will be heard by Him who made us 
both. 

Be willing to listen to the poor, and to give 
him a kind and friendly answer. 

May we be ready to defend those who are 
wronged or oppressed ! and may we be brave in 
protecting the weak ! 

Beware of evil, and never be ashamed of your 
truth or virtue ; 

For there is a shame that is sinful, and there 
is a shame that is beautiful and good. 

Accept no person against your soul. 

May not any reverence for men cause us to 
fall ! 

Never hesitate to speak when it will do good, 
nor let the beauty of your truth be hidden ; 

For, by speech, truth is known, and knowledge 
imparted. 

Never, on any account, speak what is not true. 

May we be ashamed if we do not know what 
the truth is ! 

Be willing to confess mistakes and ignorance. 

May we ever be straightforward in word and 
iri thought! 

Let not foolish people be your masters. 

The mighty shall not make us slaves. 

Be not quick in words, and slack in deeds. Be 
not harsh with those that serve you. 



116 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



May we be patient and gentle with all! Mav 
our lives be sincere ! 

Do not open your hand when there is any thing 
to get, and shut it when there is something to 
give. 

May we not think too much of the fine things 
that we possess ! 

Strive for the truth to the death, 
And the Lord will fight for us. 



IV 

CAST your bread upon the waters. 
And we shall find it after many days. 
Give a portion to seven, and even to eight. 
We know not what evil shall be upon earth. 
He that mindeth the wind will never sow ; 
He that watch eth the clouds wili never reap. 
In the morning sow your seed ; in the evening 
still continue to scatter it. 

For we know not which shall be fruitful, or 
whether both may not be. 

Sweet is the light of morning, and pleasant to 
the eye the sight of day ; 

But if we live many years, and are happy in 
them all, we must not forget the dark days that 
may come. 

Rejoice. O children ! in your youth, and let 
your hearts be merry in the days of your youth ; 
have happy thoughts, and enjoy the pleasures 
that you possess. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



117 



Bat may we remember that we must use all 
these things aright ! 

Remember your Creator in the days of your 
youth, before the sad days come. 

And the years in which we can have no pleasure ; 

Before the sun and the moon and the stars 
are darkened, 

And the rain-clouds never clear away; 

When the strong limbs tremble from weakness, 

And the eyes through dimness are darkened ; 

When the mouth opens not for eating or for 
speech, 

And the note of the early bird breaks the slum- 
ber, and the music of the human voice is unheard ; 

When there is constant fear of stumbling, and 
falling in the common way; 

TVhen the most delicate fruit is not relished, 
and the taste for food is gone : 

Because the old man is going to his long home, 
and sadness is gathering about him. 

For the silver cord which holds life's lamp sus- 
pended shall be snapped, 

And the golden bowl of the lamp shall be 
broken, 

And the bucket shall be broken at the fountain, 
And the wheel shall be broken at the well, 
And the dust shall return to the dust as it was ; 
But the spirit shall return to God who gave it. 
Fear God, therefore, and keep his command- 
ments ; 

For this is the duty of all. 



118 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



V. 

"13LESSED are the poor in spirit; 

-I— 5 For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Blessed are they that mourn ; 

For they shall be comforted. 

Blessed are the meek ; 

For they shall inherit the earth. 

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst 
after righteousness ; 

For they shall be filled. 

Blessed are the merciful ; 

For they shall obtain mercy. 

Blessed are the pure in heart ; 

For they shall see God. 

Blessed are the peace-makers ; 

For they shall be called the children of God. 

Blessed are they which are persecuted for 
righteousness' sake ; 

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

It was said to the men of the olden time, 
Thou shalt not kill ; and whosoever shall kill shall 
be in danger of the judgment. 

But the voice of Jesus says to us, Whosoever 
is angry with his brother, without cause, shall be 
in danger of the judgment, 

The men of the olden time were told that they 
should not perjure themselves, but should perform 
whatever they had sworn. 

But the Great Teacher says to us, Swear not 



• 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



119 



at all ; neither by heaven, for it is God's throne ; 
nor by the earth, for it is his footstool : but let 
your simple " Yes " and " No " be sufficient. 

The men of the olden time were taught to 
exact an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth ; 

But the Master says to us, Return not evil for 
evil; but, if one strike thee on thy right cheek, 
turn to him the other also. 

In the olden time it was taught, that, if men 
loved their neighbors, they might hate their 
enemies. 

A holier Spirit has taught us to love our enemies, 
to bless them that curse us, to do good to them 
that hate us, to pray for them that abuse us and 
persecute us; that we may be the children of our 
heavenly Father : for he makes his sun to rise 
on the evil and on the good, and sends rain for 
the just and for the unjust. 

If ye love them that love you, what merit is 
there ? 

None ; for wicked people do as much as that. 

And, if you are kind to your kindred only, do 
you do any thing worthy of praise ? 

No ; for wicked people may be good enough 
for that. We are bidden to be perfect in the 
same way that God is perfect. 



120 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



VI. 

LAY not up for yourselves treasures on earth, 
where moth and rust corrupt, and where 
thieves break in and steal ; but lay up for your- 
selves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor 
rust corrupt, and where thieves do not break in 
and steal. 

Where the treasure is, there the heart is also. 

The light of the body is the eye : if thine eye 
be clear, thy whole body will be full of light ; but, 
if thine eye be diseased, thy whole body shall be 
full of darkness. 

If the inward light be darkness, how great will 
be that darkness ! 

No one can serve two masters : for either he 
will hate this one, and love that ; or else he will 
hold to that one, and despise this. 

We cannot serve God and Mammon. 

Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought 
for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall 
drink ; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put 
on. 

Is not the life more than meat, and the body 
than raiment ? 

Behold the fowls of the air ; for they sow not, 
neither do they reap, nor gather into barns : 

Yet our heavenly Father feedeth them. 

Consider the lilies of the field how they grow; 
they toil not, neither do they spin : 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



121 



Yet even Solomon in all his glory was not ar- 
rayed like one of these. 

If God so clothe the grass of the field, which is 
to-day, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, 

Will he not much more clothe us ? 

Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall 
we eat? what shall we drink? wherewithal shall 
we be clothed ? 

Our heavenly Father knoweth that we have 
need of all these things. 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his 
righteousness, 

And all these things shall be added unto us. 

Take therefore no thought for the morrow ; for 
the morrow will take thought for its own con- 
cerns. 

Sufficient unto the day is the care thereof. 



VII. 

rflHOUGH I speak with the tongues of men 
JL and of angels, and have not charity, 

I am as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. 

And though I have the gift of ]3rophecy, and 
understand ail mysteries and all knowledge ; and 
though I have all faith, so that I can remove 
mountains, — and have not charity, 

I am nothing. 

And though I bestow all my goods to feed the 
poor, and though I give my body to be burned, 
and have not charity, 



122 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



It profiteth me nothing. 

Charity suffereth long, and is kind ; 

Charity envieth not ; 

Charity vaunteth not itself ; is not puffed up ; 
Doth not behave itself unseemly ; 
Seeketh not her own ; 
Is not easily provoked ; 
Thinketh no evil ; 

Rejoiceth not in inquity, but rejoiceth in the 
truth ; 

Beareth all things, 

Believeth all things, 

Hopeth all things, 

En dure th all things. 

Charity never faileth; 

But prophecies shall fail, 

Tongues shall cease, 

Knowledge shall vanish away. 

For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. 

But, when that which is perfect is come, that 
which is in part shall be done away. 

When I was a child, I spake as a child, I 
understood as a child, I thought as a child ; but, 
when I became a man, I put away childish things. 

Now we see through a glass darkly, but then 
face to face. 

Now I know in part ; 

But then shall I know even as also I am known. 
And now abide Faith, Hope, Charity, — these 
three ; 

But the greatest of these is Charity. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



VIII. 

THE PSALM OF LIFE. 

TELL me not, in mournful numbers, 
Life is but an empty dream ; 
For the soul is dead that slumbers, 
And things are not what they seem. 

Life is real, life is earnest, 

And the grave is not its goal : 

"Dust thou art, to dust returnest," 
Was not spoken of the soul. 

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, 

Is our destined end or way ; 
But to act, that each to-morrow 

Find us farther than to-day. 

Art is long, and Time is fleeting ; 

And our hearts, though stout and brav 
Still like muffled drums are beating 

Funeral-marches to the grave. 

In the world's broad field of battle, 

In the bivouac of life, 
Be not like dumb, driven cattle ; 

Be a hero in the strife ! 

Trust no future, howe'er pleasant ; 

Let the dead Past bury its dead : 
Act, act, in the living Present, — 

Heart within, and God o'erhead ! 



124 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Lives of great men all remind us 
We can make our lives sublime ; 

And, departing, leave behind us 
Footprints on the sands of time, — 

Footprints that perhaps another, 
Sailing o'er Life's solemn main, - — 

A forlorn and shipwrecked brother, — 
Seeing, shall take heart again. 

Let us, then, be up and doing, 

With a heart for any fate ; 
Still achieving, still pursuing, 

Learn to labor and to wait. 

H. W. Longfellow. 



XX. 

EARNESTNESS. 

HAST thou, 'midst Life's empty noises, 
Heard the solemn steps of Time, 
And the low, mysterious voices 
Of another clime ? 

gg Early hath Life's mighty question 

Thrilled within thy heart of youth 
With a deep and strong beseeching, — 
What and where is Truth ? 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



125 



Not to ease and aimless quiet 
Doth the inward answer tend, 

But to works of love and duty, 
As our being's end ; 

Earnest toil and strong endeavor 
Of a spirit, which, within, 

Wrestles with familiar evil 
And besetting sin ; 

And without, with tireless vigor, 
Steady heart, and purpose strong, 

In the power of truth, assaileth 
Every form of wrong. 



PILGRIM bound to Mecca, 



And on the desert's blistering sands 
His feet were swollen and sore. 

" To let me suffer thus," lie cried, 

" Is bitter and unjust, 
While in God's service I endure 

The painful heat and dust." 



J. G. Wlrittier. 



X. 



PATIENCE. 




Quite away his sandals wore; 



126 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



He murmured in unhappy tone, 

And in this temper came 
To where, around the holy stone, 

Knelt men of every name. 

And there, with shame and pity, 

He saw on the hot street 
A pilgrim who had worn away 

Not only shoes, but feet. 

Mgefs Oriental Poetry {altered). 



XI. 

THE SULTAN'S LESSON. 

A SULTAN placed before his throne one day 
Three vases, — one of gold, one amber, and 
one clay; 

And, when his seal was set upon each urn, 
His three sons, at his bidding, chose in turn. 

Upon the golden vase, Empire was writ ; 
Resplendent jewels all around it stood : 
The eldest grasped that vase and opened it, 
But shrank to find it brimming fall of blood. 

Glory upon the amber vase shone bright ; 
Fresh wreaths of laurel twined the letters o'er: 
The second seized it quick ; but ah, sad sight ! 
'Twas filled with dust of heroes known no more. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



127 



No word was written on the vase of earth ; 
But still the youngest prince advanced his claim : 
He oped the urn amid the courtiers' mirth, 
And nought was in it save God's holy name. 

The sultan to the throng of courtiers turned, 
And asked which of the vases weighed the most. 
Various the thoughts that in their bosoms burned, 
And came to speech among the glittering host. 

The warriors said, " The golden vase of might ; " 
The poets said, "The amber vase of fame;" 
The sages said, "The vase emblem of Right, — 
The globe is lighter than God's written name." 

Then said the sultan, " Sons, remember well 
The meaning of the lesson read to-day: 
TThen the scales tremble betwixt heaven and hell, 
The name of God will all the rest outweigh." 

Alger $ Oriental Poetry {altered). 



XII. 

THE BANNER AND THE CARPET. 

THE royal banner bent his head, 
And to the royal carpet said, 
"In the palace at Bagdad, 
Different duties we have had ; 
Different, too, is our reward. 
Though servants both of one great Jord, 
I on marches, blown and torn, 
Into the jaws of death am borne ; 



128 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Thou, afar from dust and rains, 

Afar from battles, rents, and stains, 

In the palace art displayed, 

Where prince and dame and beauteous maid 

Bless with their dance thine every strand. 

All the while some menial hand 

Spreads me in the blast, or holds 

High on a tower my flapping folds." 

Out spake the carpet then, and said, 

" Thou to heaven dost lift thy head ; 

I lie here beneath man's feet, 

A slave to tread on and to beat ; 

Thou in battle's stormy night 

Guidest heroes to the fight." 

Alger's Oriental Poetry (altered). 



XIII. 

PARADISE. 

THE nine high heavens hold eight Paradises. 
" Where is the ninth one ? " sayest thou ? In 
thy breast. 

None but the blessed dwell in the Paradises ; 
But blessedness itself dwells in the breast. 
None but the creatures are in Paradises : 
God, the Creator, nestles in the breast. 
Rather, O man! want all eight Paradises 
Than be without the ninth one in thy breast. 
Given to thee, man, are all those Paradises, 
If thou the ninth one hast within thy breast. 

Alger's Oriental Pottry. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



120 



XIV. 

STRIVE, WAIT, AXD PRAY. 

STRIVE : yet I do not promise 
The prize you dream of to-day 
Will not fade when you think to grasp it, 

And melt in your hand away ; 
But another and holier treasure 

You would now perchance disdain 
Will come when your trial is over, 
And pay you for all your pain. 

Wait : yet I do not tell you 

The hour you long for now 
Will come, with its radiance vanished, 

And a shadow on its brow ; 
Yet far through the misty future, 

With a crown of starry light, 
An hour of joy you knew not 

Is winging her silent flight. 

Pray : though the gift you ask for 

May never comfort your fears, 
May never repay your pleading ; 

Yet pray with hopeful tears. 
An answer, not that you long for, 

But diviner, will come one day : 
Your eyes are too dim to see it ; 

Yet strive and wait and pray. 

Adelaide A. Procter. 

9 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XV. 

GIVE. 

SEE the rivers flowing 
Downward to the sea, 
Pouring all their treasures 

Bountiful and free! 
Yet, to help their giving, 

Hidden springs arise; 
Or, if need be, showers 
Feed them from the skies. 

Watch the princely flowers 

Their rich fragrance spread, 
Load the air with perfumes 

From their beauty shed; 
Yet their lavish spending 

Leaves them not in dearth, 
With fresh life replenished 

By their mother-earth. 

Give thy heart's best treasures; 

From fair Nature learn : 
Give thy love, and ask not, 

Wait not, a return. 
And, the more thou spendest 

From thy little store, 
With a double bounty 

God will give thee more. 

Adelaide A. Procter, 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



131 



XVI, 

SOWING AND REAPING. 

SOW with a generous hand ; . 
Pause not for toil or pain ; 
Weary not through the heat of summer, 

Weary not through the cold spring rain ; 
But wait till the autumn comes 
For the sheaves of golden grain. 

Scatter the seed, and fear not : 

A table will be spread. 
What matter if you are too weary 

To eat your hard-earned bread : 
Sow while the earth is broken ; 

For the hungry must be fed. 

Sow : while the seeds are lying 
In the warm earth's bosom deep, 

And your warm tears fall upon it, 
They will stir in their quiet sleep, 

And the green blades rise the quicker, 
Perchance, for the tears you weep. 

Then sow ; for the hours are fleeting, 
And the seed must fall to-day : 

And care not what hands shall reap it, 
Or if you shall have passed away 

Before the waving corn-fields 
Shall gladden the sunny day. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Sow: and look onward, upward, 
Where the starry light appears ; 

Where, in spite of the coward's doubting, 
Or your own heart's trembling fears, 

You shall reap in joy the harvest 
You have sown to-day in tears. 

Adelaide A. Procter. 



XVII. 

WORD S. 

WORDS are lighter than the cloud-foam 
Of the restless ocean-spray ; 
Vainer than the trembling shadow 
That the next hour steals away. 
By the fall of summer rain-drops 

Is the air as deeply stirred ; 
And the rose-leaf that we tread on 
Will outlive a word. 

Yet, on the dull silence breaking 

With a lightning-flash, a word, 
Bearing endless desolation 

On its blighting wings, I heard. 
Earth can forge no keener weapon, 

Dealing surer death and pain ; 
And the cruel echo answered 

Through long years again. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



I have known one word hang star-like 

O'er a dreary waste of years ; 
And it only shone the brighter, 

Looked at through a mist of tears ; 
While a weary wanderer gathered 

Hope and heart on life's dark way, 
By its faithful promise, shining 

Clearer day by day. 

I have known a spirit calmer 

Than the calmest lake, and clear 
As the heavens that gazed upon it, 

With no wave of hope or fear ; 
But a storm had swept across it, 

And its deepest depths were stirred — 
Never, never more to slumber — 

Only by a word. 

I have known a word more gentle 

Than the breath of summer ah' : 
In a listening lie art it nestled, 

And it lived forever there. 
Not the beating of its prison 

Stirred it ever, night or day : 
Only with the heart's last throbbing 

Could it fade away. 

Words are mighty, words are living, — 
Serpents with their venomous stings ; 

Or bright angels, crowding round us 
With heaven's light upon their wings. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



Every word has its own spirit, 
True or false, that never dies : 

Every word man's lips have uttered 
Echoes in God's skies. 

Adelaide A. Procter. 



XVIII. 

WISHES. 

ALL the fluttering wishes 
Caged within thy heart 
Beat their wings against it, 

Longing to depart, 
Till they shake their prison 
With their wounded cry. 
Open, then, thy heart to-day ? 
And let- the captives fly. 

Let them first fly upward 

Through the starry air, 
Till you almost lose them, 

For their home is there ; 
Then, with outspread pinions 

Circling round and round, 
Wing their way wherever 

Want and woe are found ; 

Where the weary stitcher 
Toils for daily bread; 

Where the lonely watcher 
Watches by her dead ; 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



135 



Where, with thin, weak fingers 

Toiling at the loom, 
Stand the little children 

Blighted ere they bloom ; 

Where, by darkness blinded, 

Groping for the light, 
With distorted conscience, 

Men do wrong for right; 
Where, in the cold shadow 

By smooth pleasure thrown, 
Human hearts by hundreds 

Harden into stone ; 

Where on dusty highways, 

With faint heart and slow, f 
Cursing the glad sunlight, 

Hungry outcasts go ; 
Where all mirth is silenced, 

And the hearth is chill, 
For one place is empty, 

And one voice is still. 

Some hearts will be lighter, 

While your captives roam, 
For their tender singing : 

Then recall them home. 
When the sunny hours 

Into night depart, 
Softly they will nestle 

In a quiet heart* 

Adelaide A. Procter. 



136 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XIX. 

THE DARLING LITTLE GIRL. 

WHO'S the darling little girl 
Everybody loves to see ? 
She it is whose sunny face 
Is as sweet as sweet can be. 

Who's the darling little oirl 

Everybody loves to hear ? 
She it is whose pleasant voice 

Falls like music on the ear. 

"Who's the darling little girl 

Everybody loves to know ? 
She it is whose acts and thoughts 

All are pure as whitest snow. 

Who's the darling little girl 

Even Jesus Christ can love ? 
She it is, who, meek and good, 

Daily grows like him above. 

Hymns for Mothers and Children. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



137 



XX. 



THE LESSON OF THE FLOWERS. 
"^OME, my love, and do not spurn 



See the lily on its bed, 
Hanging down its modest head, 
While it scarcely can be seen, 
Folded in its leaf of green ! 

Yet we love the lily well 
For its sweet and pleasant smell, 
And would rather call it ours 
Than many other gayer flowers : 
Pretty lilies seem to be 
Emblems of humility. 

Come, my love, and do not spurn 
From a little flower to learn. 
Let your temper be as sweet 
As the lily at your feet ; 
Be as gentle, be as mild ; 
Be a modest, humble child. 

'Tis not beauty that we prize, — 
Like a summer's flower it dies ; 
But humility will last, 
Fair and sweet, when beauty's past : 
And the Father from above 
Views a humble child with love. 




Hymns fur Mothers and Children. 



138 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



XXL 

THE BEGGAR. 

A BEGGAR through the world am I ; 
From place to place I wander by : 
Fill up my pilgrim's scrip for me 
For Christ's sweet sake and charity ! 

A little of thy steadfastness, 
Rounded with leafy gracefulness, 
Old oak, give me, 

That the world's blasts may round me blow, 
And I yield gently to and fro, 
While my stout-hearted trunk below, 
And firm-set roots, unshaken be. 

Some of thy stern, unyielding might, 
Enduring still, through day and night, 
Rude tempest-shock and withering blight, 
That I may keep at bay 
The changeful April sky of chance, 
And the strong tide of circumstance, 
Give me, old granite gray. 

Some of thy pensiveness serene, 

Some of thy never-dying green, 

Put in this scrip of mine, 

That griefs may full like snow-flakes light, 

And deck me in a robe of white, 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



139 



Ready to be an angel bright, 
0 sweetly mournful pine ! 

A little of thy merriment, 
Of thy sparkling, light content, 
Give me, my cheerful brook ; 
That I may still be full of glee 
And gladsomeness where'er I be, 
Though fickle Fate hath prisoned me 
In some neglected nook. 

4 

Te have been very kind and good 
To me since I've been in the wood ; 
Ye have gone nigh to fill my heart. 
But good-by, kind friends, every one ; 
I've far to go ere set of sun : 
Of all good things I would have part. 
The day was high ere I could start, 
And so my journey's scarce begun. 

Heaven help me ! how could I forget 

To beg of thee, dear violet ! 

Some of thy modesty, 

That blossoms here as well, unseen, 

As if before the world thou'dst been: 

Oh ! give, to strengthen me. 

J. R. Lowell 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XXII. 

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS. 

TURN, turn the hasty foot aside, 
Nor crush the helpless worm : 
The frame thy wayward looks deride 
Required a God to form. 

The common Lord of all that move, 
From whom thy being flowed, 

A portion of his boundless love 
On that poor worm bestowed. 

The sun, the moon, the stars, he made 

To all his creatures free ; 
And spreads o'er earth the grassy blade 

For worms as well as thee. 

Let them enjoy their little day, 

Their lowly bliss receive : 
Oh ! do not lightly take away 

The life thou canst not give. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



141 



XXIII. 

" Not to myself alone," . 
The little opening flower transported cries, — 
"Not to myself alone I bud and bloom : 
With fragrant breath the breezes I perfume, 
And gladden all things with my rainbow dyes. 
The bee comes sipping every eventide 

His dainty fill ; 
The butterfly within my cup doth hide 
From threatening ill." 

" Not to myself alone," 
The circling star with honest pride doth boast,— 
" Not to myself alone I rise and set : 
I write upon Night's coronal of jet 
His power and skill who formed our myriad host ; 
A friendly beacon at heaven's open gate, 

I gem the sky. 
That man may ne'er forget in every fate 
His home on high." 

"Not to myself alone," 
The heavy-laden bee doth murmuring hum, — 
"Not to myself alone, from flower to flower, 
I rove the wood, the garden, and the bower, 
And to the hive at evening weary come. 
For man, for man, the luscious food I pile 

With busy care, 
Content if I repay my ceaseless toil 
With scanty share." 



1-42 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



" Not to myself alone," 
The soaring bird with lusty pinion sings, — 
" Not to myself alone I raise my song : 
I cheer the drooping with my warbling tongue, 
And bear the mariner on ray viewless wings ; 
I bid the hymnless churl my anthem learn, 
And God adore ; 
I call the worldling from his dross to turn, 
And sing and soar." 

"Not to myself alone," 
The streamlet whispers on its pebbly way, — 
"Not to myself alone I sparkling glide : 
I scatter health and life on every side, 
And strew the fields with herb and floweret gay ; 
I sing unto the common, bleak and bare, 

My gladsome tune ; 
I sweeten and refresh the languid air 
In dusty June " 

"Not to myself alone." 
O man! forget not thou — Earth's honored priest, 
Its tongue, its soul, its lip, its pulse, its heart — 
In Earth's great chorus to sustain thy part. 
Chiefest of o-uests at Life's ungrudging feast, 
Play not the niggard ; spurn thy native clod, 

And self disown ; 
Live to thy neighbor, live unto thy God, 
Not to thyself alone. 

Hymns for Mothers and Children 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



XXIV. 

EVERY LITTLE HELPS. 
UPPOSE a little twinkling star, 



Away in yonder sky, 
Should say, " What light can reach so far 

From such a star as I ? 
Not many rays of mine so far 

As yonder earth can fall : 
The others so much brighter are, 
I will not shine at all." 

Suppose a bright-green leaf, that grows 

Upon the rose-bush near, 
Should say, " Because I'm not a rose, 

I will not linger here ; " 
Or that a dew-drop, fresh and bright 

Upon that fragrant flower, 
Should say, " I'll vanish out of sight 

Because I'm not a shower." 

Suppose a little child should say, 

" Because I'm not a man, 
I will not try, in word or play, 

To do what good I can," 
Dear child, each star some light can give, 

Though gleaming faintly there ; 
Each rose-leaf helps the plant to live ; 

Each dew-drop keeps it fair. 




144 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



And our good Father who's in heaven, 

And doth all creatures view, 
To every little child has given 

Some needful w r ork to do. 
Kind deeds towards those with whom you live, 

Kind words and actions right, 
Shall, 'mid the world's worst darkness, give 

A little precious light. 

Hymns for Mothers and Children. 



XXV. 

LITTLE DEEDS. 

NOT mighty deeds make up the sum 
Of happiness below ; 
But little acts of kindliness, 
Which any child may show. 

A merry sound to cheer the babe, 

And tell a friend is near ; 
A word of ready sympathy 

To dry the childish tear; 

A glass of water timely brought ; 

An offered easy-chair; 
A turning of the window-blind 

That all may feel the air ; 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



145 



An early flower unasked bestowed ; 

A light and cautious tread ; 
A voice to gentlest whisper hushed 

To spare the aching head, — 

Oh ! deeds like these, though little things, 

Yet purest love disclose, 
As fragrant perfume on the air 

Reveals the hidden rose. 

Our heavenly Father loves to see 

These precious fruits of love ; 
And, if we only serve him here, 

We'll dwell with him above. 

Hymns for Mothers and Children. 



XXVI. 

GENTLENESS. 

SPEAK gently : it is better far 
To rule by love than fear. 
Speak gently : let no' harsh word mar 

The good we might do here. 
Speak gently to. the aged one ; 

Grieve not the care-worn heart ; 
The sands of life are nearly run : 
Let such in peace depart. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Speak gently, kindly, to the poor ; 

Let no harsh tone be heard : 
They have enough they must endure, 

Without an unkind word. 
Speak gently to the erring : 

Ye know not of the power 
With which the dark temptation came 

In some unguarded hour. 

Ye may not know how earnestly 

They struggled, nor how well, 
Until the hour of weakness came, 

And sadly then they fell. 
Speak gently to the erring : 

Oh ! do not thou forget, 
However darkly stained by sin, 

He is thy brother yet : 

Heir of the self-same heritage, 

Child of the self-same God, 
He hath but stumbled in the path 

Thou hast in weakness trod. 
Speak gently to the erring ; 

For is it not enough 
That innocence and peace have gone, 

Without thy censure rough ? 

It sure must be a weary lot 

That sin-crushed heart to bear ; 

And they that share a happier fate 
Their chidings well may spare. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



Speak kindly to the erring : 

Thou yet mayst lead them back, 

With holy words and tones of love, 
From Misery's thorny track. 

Forget not thou hast often sinned, 

And sinful yet must be. 
Deal gently with the erring one 

As God hath dealt with thee. 
Speak gently : 'tis a little thing 

Dropped in the heart's deep well : 
The good, the joy, that it may bring. 

Eternity shall tell. 



XXVII. 

DON'T FRET. 

HAS a neighbor injured you? 
Don't fret; 
You will yet come off the best ; 
He's the most to answer for : 
Never mind it, let it rest ; 

Don't fret. 

Has a wicked lie been told ? 

Don't fret : 
It will run itself to death 
If you let it quite alone ; 
It will die for want of breath : 

Don't fret. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Are your enemies at work ? 

Don't fret : 
They can't injure you a whit. 
If they find you heed them not, 
They will soon be glad to quit. 

Don't fret. 

Is adversity your lot ? 

Don't fret. 
Fortune's wheel keeps turning round : 
Every spoke will reach the top, 
Which, like you, is going down. 

Don't fret. 



XXVIII. 

LET IT PASS. 

BE not swift to take offence : 
Let it pass. 
Anger is a foe to sense : 

Let it pass. 
Brood not darkly o'er a wrong 
Which will disappear ere long; 
Rather sing this cheery song, — 

44 Let it pass ; let it pass." 

Strife corrodes the purest mind : 

Let it pass. 
As the unregarded wind 

Let it pass. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



149 



Any vulgar souls that live 
May condemn without reprieve : 
'Tis the noble who forgive. 

Let it pass ; let it pass. 

Echo not an angry word : 

Let it pass. 
Think how often you have erred : 

Let it pass. 
Since our days must pass away 
Like the dew-drops on the spray, 
Wherefore should our sorrow stay ? 

Let it pass ; let it pass. 

If for good you've taken ill, 

Let it pass. 
Oh ! be kind and gentle still : 

Let it pass. 
Time at last makes all things straight : * 
Let us not resent, but wait, 
And our triumphs shall be great. 

Let it pass ; let it pass. 

Bid your anger to depart : 

Let it pass. 
Lay these homely words to heart, — 

" Let it pass." 
Follow not the giddy throng ; 
Better to be wronged than wrong : 
Therefore sing the cheery song, — 

" Let it pass ; let it pass." 



150 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XXIX. 
LEND A HAND. 

LEND a hand to one another 
In the daily toil of life : 
When we meet a weaker brother, 

Let ns help him in the strife. 
There is none so rich but may, 

In his turn, be forced to borrow ; 
And the poor man's lot to-day 
May become our own to-morrow. 

Lend a hand to one another. 

When malicious tongues have thrown 
Dark suspicion on your brother, 

Be not prompt to cast a stone. 
* There is none so good but may 

Run adrift on shame and sorrow ; 
And the good man of to-day 

May become the bad to-morrow. 

Lend a hand to one another. 

In the race for Honors crown, 
Should it fall upon your brother, 

Let not envy tear it down. 
Lend a hand to all, we pray, 

In their sunshine or their sorrow; 
And the prize they've won to-day 

May become our own to-morrow. 

A. J. Davis's Manual. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



0 

XXX. 
CATCH THE SUNSHINE. 

CATCH the sunshine, though it flicker 
Through a dark and dismal cloud ; 
Though it falls so faint and feeble 
On a heart with sorrow bowed. 
Catch it quickly ; it is passing, — 

Passing rapidly away : 
It has only come to tell you 
There is yet a brighter day. 

Catch the sunshine, though Life's tempest 

May unfurl its chilling blast ; 
Catch the little hopeful stranger; 

Storms will not forever last. 
Don't give up, and say, " Forsaken ; " 

Don't begin to say, " I'm sad." 
Look ! there comes a gleam of sunshine : 

Catch it ! Oh, it seems so glad ! 

Catch the sunshine ! Don't be grieving 

O'er that darksome billow there : 
Life's a sea of stormy billows ; 

We must meet them everywhere. 
Pass right through them ; do not tarry; 

Overcome the heaving tide : 
There's a sparkling gleam of sunshine 

Waiting on the other side. 



152 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Catch the sunshine, catch it gladly, 

Messenger in Hope's employ ; 
Sent through clouds, through storms and billows, 

Bringing you a ray of joy. 
Don't be sighing, don't be weeping ; 

Life, you know, is but a span : 
There's no time to sigh or sorrow ; 

Catch the sunshine when you can. 

A. J. Davis's Manual. 

XXXI. 
THE FOUNTAIN. 

INTO the sunshine ; 
Full of the light ; 
Leaping and flashing 
From morn till night ; 

Into the moonlight, 

Whiter than snow ; 
Waving so flower-like 

When the winds blow ; 

Into the starlight 

Rushing in spray ; 
Happy at midnight, 

Happy by day; 

Ever in motion, 

Blithesome and cheery; 
Still climbing heavenward, 

Never aweary ; 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



153 



Glad of all weathers, 

Still seeming best ; 
Upward or downward, 

Motion thy rest ; 

Full of a nature 

Nothing can tame ; 
Changed every moment, 

Ever the same ; 

Ceaseless aspiring, 

Ceaseless content ; 
Darkness or sunshine, 

Thy element, — 

Glorious fountain ! 

Let my heart be 
Fresh, changeful, constant, 

Upward, like thee ! 

J. R. Lowell. 



XXXII. 

u The sad rhyme of the men who proudly clung 
To their first fault, and perished in their pride/' 

(\ VER the seas our galleys went. 
* Cleaving prows, in order brave, 
With speeding wind and a bounding wave, 
A orallant armament. 



154 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Each bark was built of a forest-tree 

Left leafy and rough as first it grew, 
And nailed all over the gaping sides, 
Within and without, with tough bull-hides. 
So each good ship was rude to see, 
Rude and bare to outward view ; 

But each one bore a stately tent. 
Cedar-poles in scented row 
Kept out the flakes of dancing brine ; 
An awning drooped the mast below, 
That neither noontide nor starshine 

Might pierce the regal tenement. 
When the sun dawned, gay and glad, 
We set the sail, and plied the oar ; 
But when the night-wind blew like breath, 
For joy that one day's voyage was o'er, 
We sans; together on the wide sea 
Like men at peace on a peaceful shore. 
Each sail was loosed to the wind so free, 
Each helm made sure by the twilight star ; 
And, in a sleep as calm as death, 
We, the voyagers from afar, 

Lay stretched, — each weary crew 
In a circle round its wondrous tent, 
Whence gleamed soft light and curled rich scent, 

And, with light and perfume, music too. 
At morn we started beside the mast, 
And still each ship was sailing fast. 
Now, one morn, land appeared ! — a speck, 

Dim, trembling betwixt sea and sky : 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



Not so the isles our voyage must find 

Should meet our longing eye. 
But the heaving sea was black behind 
Many a night and many a day ; 
And land, though but a rock, was nigh : 
So we broke the cedar-poles away, 
And let the purple flap in the wind ; 

And a statue bright was on every deck. 
We shouted, every man of us, 
And steered right into the harbor thus 
With pomp and paean glorious. 

A hundred shapes of lucid stone ! 

All day we built its shrine for each, — 
A shrine of rock for every one, — 
Nor paused till in the setting sun 

We sate together on the beach 
To sing because our task was done. 
When, lo ! what shouts and merry songs ! 
What laughter all the distance stirs ! 
A loaded raft, and happy throngs 

Of gentle islanders ! 
" Our isles are just at hand ! " they cried, 

" Like cloudlets faint at evening sleeping 
Oar temple gates are opened wide ; 

Our olive-groves thick shade are keeping 
For these majestic forms!" they cried. 
Then we awoke with sudden start 
From our deep dream, and knew, too late, 
How bare the rock, how desolate, 
Which had received our precious freight. 



156 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

Yet we called out, " Depart ! 
Our gifts, once given, must here abide ; 
Our work is done ; we have no heart 
To mar our work ! " we cried. 
We staid, and famished in our pride. 

Robert Browning, 



XXXIII. 
LIFE'S WORK. 

ALL around us, fair with flowers, 
Fields of beauty sleeping he ; 
All around us clarion-voices 
Call to duty stern and high. 

Thankfully we will rejoice in 
All the beauty God has given ; 

But beware it does not win us 

From the work ordained of Heaven. 

Following every voice of mercy, 
With a trusting, loving heart, 

Let us, in Life's earnest labor, 
Still be sure to do our part. 

Now, to-day, and not to-morrow, 
Let us work with all our might, 

Lest the wretched faint and perish 
In the coming stormy night. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



157 



Now, to-day, and not to-morrow, 
Lest before to-morrow's sun 

We too, mournfully departing, 
Shall have left our work undone. 



XXXIV. 

A PARABLE. 

WORN and footsore was the prophet 
When he gained the holy hill : 
" God has left the earth," he murmured ; 
" Here his presence lingers still ! 

" God of all the olden prophets, 

Wilt thou speak with men no more ? 

Have I not as truly served thee 
As thy chosen ones of yore ? 

" Hear me, Guider of my fathers ; 

Lo ! a humble heart is mine : 
By thy mercy, I beseech thee, 

Grant thy servant but a sign ! " 

Bowing then his head, he listened 

For an answer to his prayer: 
No loud burst of thunder followed, 

Not a murmur stirred the air ; 

But the tuft of moss before him 

Opened while he waited yet, 
And from out the rock's hard bosom 

Sprang a tender violet. 



8 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



" God, I thank thee ! " said the prophet : 
" Hard of heart and blind was I, 

Looking to the holy mountain 
For the gift of prophecy. 

" Still thou speakest with thy children 

Freely as in eld sublime : 
Humbleness and love and patience 

Still give empire over time. 

" Had I trusted in my nature, 

And had faith in holy things, 
Thou thyself wouldst then have sought me, 

And set free my spirit's wings. 

" But I looked for signs and wonders 
That o'er men should give me sway : 

Thirsting to be more than mortal, 
I was even less than day. 

"Ere I entered on my journey, 

As I girt my loins to start, 
Ran to me my little daughter, 

The beloved of my heart. 

" In her hand she held a flower, 

Like to this as like may be, 
Which, beside my very threshold, 

She had plucked, and brought to me." 

J. R. Lowell, 



THE GOOD LIFE. 

0 



159 



XXXV. 



BOU BEX ADHEM (may his tribe in- 



Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace. 
And saw within the moonlight in his room, 
Making it rich and like a lily in bloom, 
An angel writing in a book of gold. 
Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold ; 
And to the Presence in the room he said, 
" What writest thon ? " The vision raised its 
head, 

And, with a look made of all sweet accord, 
Answered, " The names of those who love the 



" And is mine one ? " said Abou. " Nay, not so," 
Replied the angel. * Abou spake more low, 
But cheerly still, and said, "I pray thee, then, 
Write me as one that loves his fellow-men." 
The angel wrote, and vanished. The next night 
It came again, with a great wakening light, 
And showed the names whom love of God had 
blest ; 

And, io ! Ben Adhenrs name led all the rest. 




crease !) 



Lord; 



Leigh Hunt. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XXXVI. 

YAMA AND THE DISCIPLE. 

TO the young inquirer, Yaina 
Many a precious gift had given ; 
And he urged him, " Show me Brahma ! 

Let me see the Lord of heaven ! 
Much thy wisdom hath imparted : 

Let me tread not as I trod, 
Empty-minded, vacant-hearted. 
Show me Brahma, teach me God! " 

"Ask me sons and grandsons, cattle, 

Elephants or horses, gold, 
Length of life, success in battle, 

Every bliss by time unrolled ; 
Ask me empire wide extended, 

Earth's most beautiful domains, 
Nymphs in whom the graces, blended, 

Far surpass what fancy feigns : 
Of all wonders, ask the rarest ; 

Of all songs, the sweetest choose ; 
Of all gems, select the fairest : 

Yama nothing shall refuse. 
Ask me not, with vain persistence, 

That to see which none can see, — 
Mysteries of God's existence, 

The Divine Infinity." 



THE GOOD LIFE. 

44 What is empire ? what is pleasure? 

What is wealth ? All vanities ! 
Time soon ends his little measure : 

Wearied man, exhausted, dies. 
Death conveys all mortals nearer 

To the Father whom I seek : 
Oh, reveal him I show him clearer ! 

Thou who know'st the Father, speak ! 
Solve my doubts, my vision brighten : 

Other wishes have I none. 
With God's light my soul enlighten ; 

Let me know the Unknown One ! " 
Still he urged his prayer on Yama, 

Pleading, pleading, there he stood: 
44 Oh ! unveil the hidden Brahma ! 

Show me his beatitude ! " 

44 Do thou, in serene reflection, 

Seek the purest human joys ; 
Answer pleasure by rejection ; 

Honor duty by thy choice ; 
Spurn the folly that invites thee ; 

Let all idle dreams be past : 
Then the goodness that delights thee 

Thy reward shall be at last. 
Always asking, always gleaning, 

Many a truth thy soul shall hold, 
Many a deep and beauteous meaning 

Shall be gradually unrolled. 
Not by vain disputes and wrangles 

Wilt thou fathom the concealed : 
11 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Quiet musing disentangles 

What the Father hath revealed. 

u Many are his revelations ; 

Many a gently wafted word 
Wanders 'midst the world's temptations, 

All unnoticed, all unheard. 
He who reverently listens, 

He who meditating wakes, — 
He shall see heaven's light that glistens, 

He shall hear Heaven's voice that speaks. 
There's a Spirit in attendance, 

Unobserved by 'ear or eye ; 
There is a divine resplendence 

On the darkness of the sky, 
Highest of all mountains shading 

With its sweet serenity, 
Deepest of all depths pervading 

With its still felicity. 
Sitting still, through space He travels ; 

Calmly resting, fills all time ; 
And to each true heart unravels 

All his mysteries sublime. 
He that wants him shall obtain him; 

He that loves him wins his love ; 
Till God's truth shall teach and train him 

For the highest seats above." 

Eastern Poem. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



163 



XXXVII 

THE LITTLE BELL IN THE HEART. 

MY heart keeps knocking all the day ! 
What does it mean? what would it say? 
My heart keeps knocking all thg night ! 
Child, hast thou thought of that aright? 
So long it has knocked, now loud, now low : 
Hast thou thought what it means by knocking so ? 

My child, 'tis a lively little bell, 

The dear God's gift who loves thee well : 

On the door of the soul by him 'tis hung, 

And by his hand it still is rung ; 

And he stands without, and waits to see 

Whether within he will welcome be ; 

And still keeps knocking, in hopes to win 

The welcome answer, " Come in, come in ! " 

So knocks thy heart now day by day ; 

And when its strokes have died away, 

And all its knockings on earth are o'er, 

It will knock itself at heaven's door, 

And stand without, and wait to see 

Whether within it will welcome be, 

And to hear Him say, " Come, dearest guest, 

I found in thy bosom a holy rest : 

As thou hast done, be it done to thee ; 

Come into the joys of eternity ! *' 

Translated from the German. 



164 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XXXVIII. 

THE CHILD'S WAY TO HEAVEN. 

it /^\H! I am weary of earth," said the child, 

As he looked with a tearful eye 
On the snow-white dove that he held in his 
hand ; 

"For whatever I love will die." 

Then the child came out of his little bower; 
And he came, and looked abroad; 
And he said, " I am. going:, this very hour, — 
I am going to heaven and God." 

There was shining light where the sun had set, 
And it seemed as if earth and heaven met. 

Ml round in the distant blue, 

\nd red and purple too, 

As the child looked *out on the far, far west, 
He saw a golden door, 

Where the burning sun had gone to his rest 
But a little while before. 

There was one bright spot on the cloud's dark 

face, 

As if it had been riven. 

Said the child, "I will go to that very place; 

For it must be the gate of heaven ! " 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



165 



Then the child set out to follow the sun : 
But the heavens would not stay ; 
For, ever the faster he tried to run, 
They seemed to go farther away. 

And the evening shades fell heavily, 
With night-dews cold and damp ; 
While each little star in the dark-blue sky 
Lit up its silvery lamp. 

A light wind wafted the fleecy clouds ; 
And it seemed to the child that they 
Were travelling on to the west, while the stars 
Were going the other way. 

So the child called out, as he saw them stray, 
By the evening breezes driven, 
"Little stars, you are wandering out of the way: 
That is not the way to heaven." 

Then he wandered on through the rough, waste 
lands 

Where the tangled briers meet, 

Till the prickles scratched his dimpled hands, 

And wounded his little feet. 

He could not see before him well, 
And the night grew dark and cold : 
And at last he cried ; for he could not tell 
His way on the open wold. 



168 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Then the child knelt down on the damp, green 

sod, 

And he said his evening prayer; 

And he fell asleep as he thought of God, 

Who was listening to him there. 

A long, long sleep ; for they found him there 
When the sun went down next day ; 
And he looked like an angel, pale and fair ; 
But his cheek was as cold as clay. 

The sunbeams glanced on the drops of dew 
That lay on his ringlets bright, 
Glistening in every varied hue 
Like a coronet of light. 

From the German. 



XXXIX. 
LABOR. 

PAUSE not to dream of the future before us ; 
Pause not to weep the wild cares that come 
o'er us : 

Hark! how creation's deep musical chorus 
Unintermitting goes up into heaven ! 
Yever the ocean-wave falters in flowing; 
^sever the little seed stops in its growing; 
More and more richly the rose-heart keeps glowing, 
Till from its nourishing stem it is riven. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



167 



Labor is life. 5 Tis the still water faileth : 
Idleness ever despaireth, bewaileth. 
Keep the watch wound; for the dark rust assaileth: 
Flowers droop and die in the stillness of noon. 
Labor is glory. The flying cloud lightens ; 
Only the waving wing changes and brightens ; 
Idle hearte only the dark future frightens : 
Play the sweet keys, wouldst thou keep them in 
tune. 

Labor is rest from the sorrows that greet us ; 
Rest from all petty vexations that meet us ; 
Rest from sin-promptings that ever entreat us ; 
Rest from world-sirens that lure us to ill. 
Work, and pure slumbers shall wait on thy pil- 
low ; 

Work, thou shalt ride bver Care's coming billow : 
Lie not down wearied 'neath Woe's weeping wil- 
low ; 

Work with a stout heart and resolute will. 

Droop not, though shame, sin, and anguish are 
round thee ; 

Bravely fling off the cold chain that hath bound 
thee ; 

Look on yon pure heaven smiling beyond thee ; 
Rest not content in thy darkness, a clod. 
Work for some good, be it ever so lowly : 
Labor ; all labor is noble and holy. 

Frances Osgood. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XL. 

THE KINGDOM OF GOD. 

I SAY to thee, Do thou repeat 
To the first man thou mayest meet 
In lane, highway, or open street, 

That he and we, and all men, move 

Under a canopy of love 

As broad as the blue sky above ; 

That doubt and trouble, fear and pain 
And anguish, all are shadows vain; 
That death itself shall not remain ; 

That weary deserts we may tread ; 
A dreary labyrinth may thread ; 
Through pathways underground be led. 

Yet, if we will one Guide obey, 
The dreariest path, the darkest way, 
Shall issue out in heavenly day ; 

And we, on divers shores now cast, 
Shall meet, our perilous voyage past, 
All in our Father's house at last. 

And, ere thou leave him, say thou this, — 
Yet one word more: they only miss 
The winning of that fatal bliss 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



1G9 



Who will not count it true, that love, 
Blessing, not cursing, rules above, 
And that in it we live and move. 

And one thing further make him know, — 
That to believe these things are so, 
This firm faith never to forego, 

Despite of all which seems at strife 
With blessing, all with curses rife ; 
That this is blessing, this is life. 



XLI. 

FOLLOW ME. 
JO YAGER on Life's troubled sea, 



T Sailing to eternity, 
Turn from earthly things away : 
Vain they are, and brief their stay, 
Chaining down to earth the heart ; 
Nothing lasting they impart. 
Voyager, what are they to thee ? 
Leave them all, and follow me. 

Traveller on the road of Life, 
Seeking pleasure, finding strife, 
Know the world can never give 
Aught on which the soul can live. 



Trench. 




0 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Grasp not riches, seek not fame, 
Shining dnst, and sounding name : 
Traveller, what are they to thee ? 
Leave them ail, and follow me. 

Wanderer from thy Father's throne, 
Hasten back, thine errings own ; 
Turn, thy path leads not to heaven ; 
Turn, thy sins will be forgiven ; 
Turn, and let thy songs of praise 
Mingle with angelic lays. 
Wanderer, here is bliss for thee : 
Leave them all to follow me. 

Anon. 



XLII. 
THE BUILDERS. 

ALL are architects of Fate, 
Working in these walls of Time ; 
Some with massive deeds and great,* 
Some with ornaments of rhyme. 

Nothing useless is, or low : 
Each thing in its place. is best; 

And what seems but idle show 
Strengthens and supports the rest. 

For the structure that we raise, 
Time is with materials filled : 

Our to-days and yesterdays 

Are the blocks with which we build. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



17 



Truly shape and fashion these ; 

Leave no yawning gaps between : 
Think not, because no man sees, 

jpuch things will remain unseen. 

In the elder days of Art, 

Builders wrought with greatest care 
Each minute and unseen part ; 

For the Gods see everywhere. 

Let us do our work as well, — 
Both the unseen and the seen ; 

Make the house where God may dwell 
Beautiful, entire, and clean ; 

Else our lives are incomplete, 

Standing in these walls of Time, — 

Broken stairways, where the feet 
Stumble as they seek to climb. 

Build to-day, then, strong and sure, 

With a firm and ample base ; 
And ascending and secure 

Shall to-morrow find its place. 

Thus alone can we attain 

To those turrets, where the eye 

Sees the world as one vast plain, 
And one boundless reach of sky. 

Henry W. Loiujfdhw. 



172 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



XLIII. 

THE LADDER OF ST. AUGUSTINE. 

SAINT AUGUSTINE, well hast thou said 
That of our vices we can frame 
A ladder, if we will but tread 

Beneath our feet each deed of shame. 

All common things, each day's events 
That with the hour begin and end, 

Our pleasures and our discontents, 
Are rounds by which we may ascend. 

The low desire ; the base design 
That makes another's virtues less ; 

The revel of the ruddy wine, 
And all occasions of excess ; 

The longing for ignoble things ; 

The strife for triumph more than truth ; 
The hardening of the heart, that brings 

Irreverence for the dreams of youth ; 

All thoughts of ill ; all evil deeds, 

That have their root in thoughts of ill ; 

Whatever hinders or impedes 
The action of the nobler will, — - 

All these must first be trampled down 
Beneath our feet, if we would gain 

In the bright fields of fair renown 
The right of eminent domain. 



THE GOOD LIFE. 



173 



We have not wings ; we cannot soar : 
But we have feet to scale and climb 

By slow degrees, by more and more, 
The cloudy summits of our time. 

The mighty pyramids of stone 

That wedge-like cleave the desert airs, 

When nearer seen, and better known, 
Are but gigantic flights of stairs. 

The distant mountains, that uprear 
Their solid bastions to the skies, 

Are crossed by pathways, that appear 
As we to higher levels rise. 

The heights by great men reached and kept 
Were not attained by sudden flight ; 

But they, while their companions slept, 
Were toiling upward in the night. 

Standing;: on what too long: we bore 

With shoulders bent, and downcast eyes, 

We may discern, unseen before, 
A path to higher destinies. 

Nor deem the irrevocable past 
As wholly wasted, wholly vain, 

If, rising on its wrecks, at last 
To something; nobler we attain. 

Henry W. Lcragfdlow. 



174 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



XLIV. 

THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

OTJR blest Redeemer, ere lie breathed ' 
His tender last farewell, 
A Guide, a Comforter, bequeathed, 
With us to dwell. 

He came in tongues of living flame 

To teach, convince, subdue : 
All powerful as the wind he came, 
As viewless too. 

He came sweet influence to impart; 

A gracious, willing guest 
While he can find one humble heart 
Wherein to rest. 

And his that gentle voice we hear, 

Soft as the breath of even, 
That checks each fault, that calms each fear, 
And speaks of heaven. 

And every virtue we possess, 

And every victory won, 
And every thought of holiness, 
Are his alone. 

Spirit of Purity and Grace, 

Our weakness pitying see : 
Oh ! make our hearts thy dwelling-place, 

An d w or t h i er th ee ! 



PART III. 



TRUTH. 



Talk between the Teacher and the Child. 
GOD. 

Who made the things that you see? 

God. He made the sun, the moon, the stars, 
the rivers, the rocks, and green grass, the trees 
and flowers. He made also every living creature. 

Did God make these things with his hands as 
a man makes a watch or a pen-knife? 

Xo : he made the light, the air, the elements, 
and the powers by which all things came into form. 

Who created you ? 

God. 

Did the same God create your father and 
mother? 
He did. 

Did he also create yoicr grandfather and your 
grandmother, and all icho ever lived? 

He created all who have lived on the earth. 

175 



176 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Did he create you as a man carves an image ? 
'No : he made the substance from which we were 
made, and' the laws by which it came into form. 
Can you see God f 

Not with our eyes; for he has no body. 
How, then; can you see him, if not with your 
eyes ? 

God is seen with the eye of the heart. 
What do you mean by the eye of the heart % 
The eye of the heart is purity. Jesus said, 

4i Blessed are the pure in heart ; for they shall see 

God." 

Who are the pure in heart t 
They that are not vain nor proud nor selfish ; 
the modest and the simple ; they who do not 
think of themselves, but who love some others 
more than themselves, and goodness more than 
all. 

What is God ? 
God is spirit : so Jesus said. 
What do you mean by saying that God is 
spirit ? 

TTe mean that he is wisdom and love. The be- 
loved disciple, who tells us that God is spirit, says 
also, " God is light ; n " God is love.'' 

Do you know God, then, when you are wise and 
loving ? 

We know God when we love wisdom and good- 
ness. 

And irhen do you lore God? 

When we love to be true and just and kind. 



TRUTH. 



177 



To know God and to love God are the same 
thing. 

Can you be true and just and kind to God ? 

No ; but we can be to his children. John the 
evangelist said, " He that loveth not his brother 
whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has 
not seen. 

Then you love God when you love your fellow- 
beings^ any of your fellow-beings in particular ? 

No : when we love all ; because they are his 
children as we are. 

Does God love all his children alike ? Does 
he love the foolish as well as the wise, the mean 
as well as the generous, the false as ivell as the 
true, the cruel as well as the kind, the bad as well 
as the good ? 

Yes : he loves one as well as the other ; but he 
does not love all with the same kind of love. 

What do you mean by that ? 

We mean that he loves the good because he ap- 
proves of them ; and he loves the bad because he 
pities them. He loves the good because they 
are good : he loves the bad in order that he may 
make them good. 

What story did Jesus tell about that ? 

The story of the Prodigal Son. 

(The story may be read, and made the subject of a lesson or 
lessons.) 

When are you near to God? 
We are always near him. 

12 



178 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



He is always near you / but are you always 
near to him ? 

When do you feel near to him f 

When, in loving-kindness, we feel near to his 
children. 

How does he seem to you at such times ? 
He seems to us like a tender Father and 
Mother. 

What do you mean by praying to God? 

We mean earnestly desiring to be faithful and 
just and loving to our fellow-creatures ; trying to 
be good, and begging him to make us so. 

Does he ansicer your prayer ? 

Oh, yes ! all such prayer for help is answered. 
Every one that asks for what is really good for 
him receives it ; he that seeks goodness finds it ; 
and to him that knocketh at the door of wisdom 
it is opened. 

But is ashing with the lips enough ? 

No: we must ask with all our might. The 
body must pray for what it needs by working 
with its hands ; the mind must pray for wisdom 
by studying ; the heart must pray for peace and 
comfort and happiness by being kind. Prayer 
gets what it w r ants, only when it becomes labor. 

But many good things are given to us which 
we do not labor for, which we simply wish for 
earnestly ; are there not ? 

Oh, yes ! some of the dearest things come so. 
God has thousands of servants always waiting to 
watch over us, and give us good things. 



TRUTH. 



179 



Do you mean by these servants the good an- 
gels ? 

Yes. But ail that work with God, whether 
beings visibie or invisible, are angels, or messen- 
gers of his goodness. 

How does God make himself known to men ? 

In the world of beauty and use which he has 
made. 

Is there any better way than that ? 

Yes: in our own wonderful bodies, with their 
senses and organs, and all their powers. 

Is there any other toay still? 

Yes : in our minds and hearts. 

But is there not yet a fourth way, more noble 
and beautiful than either? 

There is. The noblest and best men and women 
show more of God than can be learned from the 
trees or the flowers, or all the glory of the heav- 
ens ; more than the body teaches, or the mind. 
They are the most perfect images of God on the 
earth. 

And who was the greatest of these ? 
The greatest of these was Jesus. 



180 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



THE SPIRIT. 

LET us talk together now about spirit, — the 
Holy Spirit, as it is called, the Spirit of God. 
I will ask, and you will answer. The answers you 
will give are written down for you, and are not 
your own ; but you can make them your own by 
thinking of them seriously as you say them. 

Will you tell me then, children, tohat the word 
" spirit " means f 

It means quick air, or living breath. 
Wha% then, is God's Spirit ? 
It is the breathing of God on the hearts of his 
children. 

Do you think that God breathes on the hearts 
of his children as yon breathe on your chilly 
hands to warm them, or on a f rosty w indow-pane 
to make it cover itself over with ice-flowers ? 

No : we mean only that nothing gives us so 
good an idea of his Spirit, and of the way it moves, 
as the air that we breathe in and out. 

Will you tell me v:hy f 

Because it is so gentle, yet so swift and strong. 
It is everywhere, and we cannot see it : it is in 
all bodies, and it gives life to all bodies ; yet it 
cannot be caught. It bears up the globe we live 
on; yet it cannot be felt. We know not how it 
comes and goes, nor do we know where it comes 
from, and whither it is always going. 



TRUTH, 



181 



What did Jesus say about the Spirit of God? 

" The wind bloweth where it listeth ; and thou 
nearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell 
whence it cometh, nor whither it goeth: so is 
every man that is born of the Spirit; 5 ' 

Has the Spirit of God always been working in 
the hearts of his children? 

It has. As soon as there was a man or a 
woman or a little child able to feel it, there it 
was waiting to be felt in the heart. 

Has it been given alike to all nations ? 

Yes. Just as the air wraps the whole world 
about, and has, from the beginning, been breathed 
in by all people on the surface of the globe ; so 
this Spirit-air lias bathed the hearts of men and 
women all over the earth, and no souls could ever 
have lived without it. 

Is it given to all men and women, v:hoever they 
may be ? Is it given to the simple as well as to 
the learned, to the foolish as well as to the wise, 
to the vicious as vjell as to the virtuous, to the 
wicked as well as to the good? 

Yes : it is given to all alike, just as the air of 
heaven is. Bad men may breathe it as well as 
good men, if they will. 

Why, then, are not all men and icomen good? 

Because they will not take into their hearts this 
heavenly air. 

But why ' to ill they not? Is it not icith them? 
Does it not touch them ? Does it not flow about 
them ? 



182 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Oh, yes ! but they do not think of it ; nor do 
they know how good it would be for them. 

They are bad, then, because their hearts are 
narrow and close and foul with hates and un- 
clean wishes ? Is that what you mean ? 

Yes : they are soul-sick, precisely as people are 
sick in body who breathe foul air in dark, low 
chambers. If they would open the windows, 
they would be glad. 

What does God's Spirit do for Ms children ? 

It makes them active, cheerful, and fresh ; it 
brightens the mind; it warms the heart with the 
love of what is pure, sweet, and kind ; it inspires 
feelings of gratitude and trust, and stirs the Ion 2;- 
ing to be perfect. 

Can you tell me what the working of it is like? 

It is like the first warm day in spring, or a 
perfect summer morning, when the sunshine and 
the sweet air, and the voice of the birds, and the 
odors from the ground, and the fragrance of the 
flowers, fill us full of delight ; w r hen the heavens 
and the earth brim over with gladness, and our 
bosoms seem too small to hold all the love and 
joy 'that crowd into them. 

Does the Holy S2oirit do as much for one as it 
does for another? 

It would do as much if it could. But the violet 
cannot take as much sunshine and dew as the lily, 
nor the lily as the rose-bush, nor the rose-bush 
as the maple-tree. So God's children cannot all 



TRUTH. 



183 



breathe in the same amount of his Spirit ; but all 
can take as much as they need. 

There are many different gifts of the Spirit, 
then f 

Yes : so we are taught in the Scripture. To 
one it gives tenderness, to another strength ; to 
some gentleness, to others courage ; to some quiet- 
ness, to others activity; to some lowliness, to oth- 
ers heroism ; to one it gives wisdom, to another 
simplicity, to another patience, to another meek- 
ness ; to one it gives the power to avoid tempta- 
tion, to another the power to resist it. 

There are, then, as many gifts as there are 
graces ? 

There are; but all good gifts are from the 
Spirit, which makes our hearts bear flowers and 
fruits as the sun and rain make the earth bring 
forth grasses and corn. 

What do we say of people who have breathed 
in a great deal of this Holy Spirit ? 

We say that they are inspired. 

Can you mention the names of any inspired 
persons ? 

Moses, who gave the Ten Commandments ; 
David, who sung the songs which we call Psalms ; 
Jesus, who preached the Sermon on the Mount; 
Paul, who wrote the sweet chapters about char- 
ity ; John, who said, " God is love," and, when he 
was too old and weak to utter any thing more, said, 
" Little children, love one another." 

That will do; bat tell me, did none receive 



184 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



the Holy Spirit but those you read of in the 
Bible f 

Oh, yes ! Many others have received it. Many 
receive it now. Many living men and women 
among ourselves are full of it. 

How do you know that they are ? 

By their love for what is true, just, and good ; 
by their own great truth, justice, and goodness ; 
and by their living to help the erring, the 
suffering, the wronged, and the wicked. 

Does the Holy Spirit come to little children ? 

Yes : just as the air comes to daisies and cro- 
cuses ; and it makes them sweet and loving as 
little children. 

What can you do to make the Spirit come to 
your hearts, and work there ? 

We can be simple, truthful, and obedient ; we 
can be diligent ancl faithful ; we can love our 
parents, our brothers and sisters, our schoolmates 
and companions; we can forbear to injure any; 
we can forgive those who have injured us; and, 
while we live, we can try to do good in the 
little world we live in. 



TRUTH. 



185 



JESUS THE TEACHER. 

WE will make Jesus the subject of our lesson 
to-day ; and as all that we know about 
Jesus is written in the four Gospels, which most of 
you have read, I shall ask you questions, and you 
will give me a nswers. And, first, — 
I icant you to tell me who Jesus was* 
He was a great teacher and saint, who lived 
nearly two thousand years ago in what is now 
called the Holy Land. He was the son of lowly 
parents ; but so wise, that he was called the Child 
of the Spirit; and so good, that men took him to 
be an angel from heaven. Millions worship him 
now as if he was God himself. 
Was he God? 

Xo : we believe that he was a man as other 
men are. He was poor, he had few friends, he 
had much pain and sorrow, he was often lonely 
and troubled and tempted ; but he was so pure 
and lovely, so much sweeter and holier than any 
God they worshipped or knew of, that men said 
he was not a man, he could not be a man ; and 
they worshipped him. 

Can you tell me how Jesus came to be so great 
in goodness as he teas ? 

We cannot. We cannot tell how we ourselves 



136 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



came to be what we are ; much less can we tell how 
a wonderful person like Jesus came to he what he- 
was. But his heart was simple and pure ; and 
the Holy Spirit can do any thing with a perfectly 
pure heart. 

You said that Jesus was a great teacher. 
What thrags did he teach about? 

He taught about God and providence, the good 
life, and the happiness of heaven. 

Can you tell me what Jesus taught about God / 

He taught that God was a Father who loves all 
men as his children, and wishes to make them all 
happy. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and 
the good, and sends his rain on the just and the 
unjust. 

What did Jesus teach about providence? 

He taught that God's care is over every thing; 
that nothing is neglected or forgotten ; that not 
a sparrow falls to the ground unnoticed, and not a 
flower dies before its hour. 

What did he teach abaut men and women? 

He taught that they are God's children, made in 
the image of the heavenly Father; and that they 
should try and be as much like him as they could. 

What did Jesus teach about little children? 

Jesus loved little children : he took them in his 
arms, and blessed them. He said that people 
must become like little children if they wished 
to enter into his kingdom. He said, too, that the 
guardian angels of little children were nearest to 
God in the world of spirits, and could always 
look on his face. 



THJJ Til, 



187 



What did Jesus teach about happiness ? 

He taught that happiness did not consist in fine 
clothes, or in delicate things to eat and drink, but 
in goodness. 

Where does he teach this ? 

He teaches it in the Beatitudes, or the prom- 
ises of bliss. 

Will you recite the Beatitudes ? 

What did Jesus teach about heaven f 

He taught that it is within us; a state of mind 
caused by love. Every sweet and pure heart, he 
said, was already in heaven. We are in heaven 
when we are good. 

But did he not teach that heaven is a place, as 
loell as a state of mind / 

Yes ; he said that we were to make a heaven 
about us, on the earth, by loving our fellow- 
creatures. 

What did Jesus say was the first thing in 
religion? 

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy 
heart and soul and strength and mind. 
What did he say icas the second thing ? 

Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 

And how, according to Jesus, teas one to show 
his love of God? 

By loving his neighbor. 
What did Jesus mean by neighbor? 

He meant anybody who needs us, or is needed 
bv us. 

Ccm you tell the story in which he says this? 
It is the story of the Good Samaritan. 



188 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION* 



JESUS THE SAINT. 

You said that Jesus was a great saint. What 
is a saint ? 

A saint is one who gives up his own will, and 
lives to do the will of his heavenly Father. 

Ho 10 did Jesus show that he was a saint? 

By his meekness, his patience, his submission, 
his willingness to do what he ought instead of 
what he liked ; by his forgetfulness of himself 
when others needed his help ; by his sweetness 
when he w r as abused ; by his silence when he was 
insulted. 

Can you give me an example of the saintliness 
of Jesus ? 

His silence before Pilate, when the Roman 
governor tried to terrify him by his power. 

Can you give another? 

His patience when the soldiers put the reed 
into his hand, and the crown of thorns on his 
head ; when they struck him with their hard fists, 
and spit upon him. 

Can you give a third example ? 

His forgiving the men who nailed him to the 
cross, and the cruel people wdio mocked him, 
making sport of his sufferings. Then he said, 
" Father, forgive them : they know not what they 
do!" 



TRUTH. 



189 



Can you remember yet one more ? 

His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane : 
" Father, not my will, but thine, be done." 

Was Jesus ever tempted to do wrong? 

Yes : he was tempted to use his power for un- 
worthy ends, — to make himself rich and great 
and famous. 

What did he do when he was tempted? 

He put the temptation by as an evil thing, and 
did what he knew was right. 
, How did Jesus spend his life ? 

In doino^ good to his fellow-men, healing the 
sick, teaching the simple, comforting the sad, and 
making the wicked feel that they should be £ftid 
could be good. 

Can ice become like Jesus ? 

We cannot become equal to him ; but we can 
be like him. We cannot do what he did, nor 
lead the kind of life that he did ; but we can have 
the same spirit that he had. 

What do you mean by having the same 
spirit ? 

We mean the same wishes and purposes. He 
was patient, gentle, merciful : we can be so too. 
He lived to do all the good he could : we can do 
the same. He thought all the time how he might 
do God's will: we may think how we can do it 
also. 

Will his having done it make your doing it 
easier ? 

Yes, a great deal easier. As often as we think 



190 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



of him, we become stronger. When we are 
tempted, the story of his victory makes us brave ; 
when we are sad, the story of his cheerfulness 
makes us bright ; when we are cold-hearted, the 
story of his love makes us warm ; when we do 
wrong, the story of his goodness makes us ashamed 
and penitent. 

What do you mean by calling Jesus your 
Saviour ? 

We mean that the thought of his great love- 
liness makes us wish to be lovely, pure, and 
sweet, and so saves us from being foolish and 
wicked. 

a Should you not, then, be grateful for Jesus ? 

Oh, yes! more than for anybody else, except 
our father and mother : sometimes even more 
than for them ; for he teaches us to love what is 
right; he makes it seem noble to love our fellow- 
beings, and he makes it seem best of all to love 
God. 

What rule for a perfect life did Jesus give? 
The Golden Rule. 

Will you recite to me the Golden Rule f 
Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. It 
tells us to return good for evil. 

Is there a Silver Mule ? and what is it? 
The Silver Rule bids us return good for good. 
Is there an Iron Hide ? and what is it ? 1 
The Iron Rule bids us return evil for evil. 
Is there a Brazen Rule ? and what is it ? 
The Brazen Rule bids us return evil for good. 



TRUTH. 



191 



What does Jesus say about the Golden Hide? 

He says that they who obey it do all that can 
be asked of them, even by God himself. 

Can little children obey this ride f 

Yes ; just as well as men and women, or as an- 
gels, can. They can return good for evil; they 
can bless those that curse them ; they can pray 
for those that abuse them ; they can be kind to 
those that hate them. 

Then little children may be perfect Christians ? 

Certainly : all that render good for evil are per- 
fect Christians. 



192 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



A CHILD'S CREED. 

I BELIEVE that I am a child of God, my heav- 
enly Father, who created me, who preserves 
me, who loves me as his child. 

I believe that Jesus was my heavenly Fathers 
best-beloved Son ; and that I shall be well beloved, 
as he was, if I become like him. 

I believe that God, and all good angels, and all 
good men and women, and all good children, are 
helping me all the time to lead a holy life. 

I believe that my faults may be corrected ; and 
my sins, if I repent of them sincerely, and try to 
be good, will be forgiven and forgotten. 

I believe that I cannot be happy or good alone, 
but only as others are happy and good. 

I believe that we make a heaven in our homes 
by our kindness and love. 

I believe that I shall not die when my body 
dies. 

I believe that there will be a heaven hereafter 
for all good children. 

I believe that all children will at last become 
good, and will go to heaven, to be happy in God's 
love forever. 



TRUTH. 



193 



GOLDEN WORDS. 
To be spoken together by Teacher and Children. 

HEAVEN is first a temper, and then a 
place. 

Little children, love one another. 

If thine enemy hunger, feed him ; if he thirst, 
give him drink. 

Bless them that curse you; bless, and curse 
not. Rejoice with them that rejoice, and weep 
with them that weep. 

Be not wise in your own conceit. 

Better a dish of the plainest food, where love 
is, than the richest meat and hatred therewith. 

Speak gently to all, no matter to what class 
they belong. 

Let not him think he is loved by any who loves 
none. 

If your companion is doing wrong, teach him 

13 



194 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



kindly, and show him his mistake. If you cannot 
do this, blame yourself. 

The sincerity that is not loving springs from 
love that is not sincere. 

They who love to be feared fear to be loved. 

Have patience with all things, but chiefly have 
patience with yourself. 

If one will be just, let him see his neighbor's 
case with his own eyes, and his own case with 
his neighbor's eyes. 

Every one is as much to himself as we are to 
ourselves. 

Live with your friends as if you would keep 
them from being your enemies, and with your 
enemies as if you would compel them to be your 
friends. 

Rather be forsaken by a friend than forsake 
one. 

Cherish the good in all people, and be glad you 

have found it. 

Self-love will always correct too much sympa- 
thy. See that there is sympathy enough to cor- 
rect self-love. 



TRUTH. 



195 



Be not angry with the foolish ; for they suffer 
as much as you suffer, and you have a joy which 
they have not. 

Be just in your judgments, even when they 
must be against yourselves, your relations or 
your parents, the rich or the poor; for God is 
more worthy than they all. 

Violence is partial and transient : gentleness is 
universal and constant. 

i 

Some tears belong to us because we are unfor- 
tunate, others because we are kind, many be- 
cause we are mortal, but most because we are 
unwise : only these last always produce more. 

• 

Our happiness, when it comes with duty, is the 
greatest we can have : if it does not come, we 
live, if not in the light of joy, yet in the shadow 
of heaven. 

Forsaking duty, we find what we took for heav- 
en to be none. 

What we owe to ourselves, we owe to our 
neighbor ; what we owe to our neighbor, we owe 
to the whole world. 

Do not pity vice, looking down on it ; but pity 
it, helping it up, and planting it by your side. 



16 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

Life is a thing of years ; death, a thing of mo- 
ments. 

Be not sorry that men do not know you ; rather 
be sorry that you do not know them. 

When you see a good man, think whether you 
equal him ; when you see a bad man, look into 
your own bosom. 

" I am but common earth," said the piece of 
perfumed clay ; "but I have lived with the rose." 

The only sure way to pass for any thing *is to 
be something. 

No man is free who has vice, for his master. 

As we can do nothing without the body, let us 
take care that the body is in a condition to aid 
us. 

To be well to do does not consist merely in 
being well off, but in being well off in consequence 
of well-doing. 

As the sun does not wait for prayers and praises 
before he will rise, so neither do you wait for 
praises and shouts before you will be good. 



Is the cucumber bitter, throw it away ; are 



TRUTH. 197 

there thorns in the road, walk aside : do not 
say, " Why are such things in the world ? " 

Choose rather to be good to-day than to- 
morrow. 

Form yourself anew each day with liberty, by 
tranquillity, simplicity, and a sense of what is 
decent and becoming. 

The good study to spiritualize their bodies ; the 
bad, to brutalize their souls. 

If I have no friend to tell me my faults, God 
send me an enemy ! 

In worship, the presence of the mind will com- 
pensate for the absence of the body ; but the pres- 
ence of the body will never make amends for the 
absence of the mind. 

Youth is the great man's glory and the poor 
man's stock. 

Every one, taken at his best, is good for some- 
thing. 

Never speak when you are in a passion, nor to 
any one that is in a passion. 

Every thing is dangerous to one that is afraid 
of it. 



198 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



He that shall appear at the last day with good 
works shall have for them a tenfold recompense; 
but he that shall appear with evil works shall 
receive for them only an equal punishment. 

To bear and to pardon is the wisdom of life. 

God will not punish you for a careless word ; 
but he will punish you for your solemn promises. 

When you measure any thing, give mil meas- 
ure ; when you weigh any thing, give just weight. 

One hour of justice is better than seventy 
years of prayer. 

Every good act is charity. Giving water to the 
thirsty is charity. Putting a wanderer in the right 
path is charity. Removing stones and thorns from 
the road is charity. Smiling in your brother's 
face is charity. Our true wealth hereafter is the 
good we do in this world. When one dies, men 
ask what property he left behind him ; but angels 
ask what good deeds he sent before him. 

Paradise is at the feet of mothers. Paradise is 
for them that bridle their anger. 

When a good deed is done, the angel of life 
writes it down with joy ten times. When an evil 
deed is done, the angel of life says to the angel of 



TRUTH. 



199 



death, " Wait seven hours before you write it 
down : the man may repent, and ask forgive- 
ness." 

To know that a thing is right, and not to do it, 
is weakness. 

Have no friend morally inferior to yourself. 
Make not the constant man your foe. 

Do not suppose that your prayers are the only 
prayers in the world. 

At the last day, the wicked will say to the good, 
"O ye pure ones! it is because you did not in- 
struct us that we are shut out from the company 
of the blessed." 

He that diligently sows the ground gains a 
greater stock of religious merit than he could 
gain by ten thousand idle prayers. 

Do not allow yourself to be carried away by 
anger; angry words and scornful looks are sins; 
to strike another, or vex him with words, is sin ; 
even the purpose to strike another deserves pun- 
ishment ; to think evil is a sin ; haughty thoughts 
are sins. 

God dwells in the heart of all creatures. 



200 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



He who has not caused the least fear to any 
creature whatsoever has nothing to fear after he 
has quitted his body. 

The soul is its own witness and its own refuge* 
The sinful say in their hearts. -None see us;" 
but the Spirit within their breast sees them. 

The Supreme Spirit dwells in thine own bosom 
perpetually, and is an all-knowing witness of thy 
goodness or thy wickedness. 

The sacrifice of a thousand horses has been put 
in the balance with one true word, and the one 
true word weighed, down the thousand horses. 

There are two roads to perfect virtue, — to be 
true, and to do no evil to any creature. 

Never say of any thing, " I have lost it ; " but 
say. instead, " I have given it back." 

Remember, it is not he who abuses you, or 
strikes you, that insults you. All depends on the 
way you take it. Nobody insults you but your- 
self. 

If you hear that one has spoken ill of you, 
do not be angry; but rather say, u If he had 
known my other faults, he would not have men- 
tioned these." 



TRUTH. 



Never say much of your actions or dangers ; for, 
however interesting they may be to you, they 
cannot be so interesting to others. 

When you do any thing that you feel sure ought 
to be done, never shrink from being seen to do it : 
for, if you are not acting rightly, shun the action 
itself ; if you are, why fear that men shall know 
it ? 

If you would be well spoken of, learn to speak 
well of others. 

At every meal, remember that there are two 
guests to be fed, — the body and the mind. 

Every place is safe to him who dwells with 
justice. 

Would you know how to grieve your enemy ? 
Try to be as good as you can. 

Nature has given us one tongue, and two ears, 
that we may hear twice as much as we speak. 

Choose the best life. Habit will make it 
pleasant. 

Can the sun illumine so great a portion of the 
universe ? and cannot He who made and moves 
the sun perceive all things ? 



202 A GUILD'S BOOK OF RELIGIOX. 



When you have shut your door, and darkened 
your window, never say you are alone ; for you 
are not alone : God is within ; and he has no 
need of light to see what you are doing. 

Make not an idol of your clothes, and you will 
not be enraged with the thief. 

Difficulties are things that show what we are. 

Unless you place your goodness and your 
treasure in the same thing, your goodness will 
be sacrificed. 

A handful of good life is better than a bushel of 
learning. 

Who gives to all denies all. 

Better the feet slip than the tongue. 

God often hath a great share in a small house. 

Better a bare foot than none. 

It costs more to do ill than to do well. 

Justice has feet of wool, and fingers of iron. 

The pride of virtue is itself a sin. 



TRUTH. 



203 



There is some soul of goodness in things evil, 
would men observing!}* distil it out. 

Earthly power doth then show likest God's, 
when mercy seasons justice. 

Only a sweet and holy soul, 

Like seasoned timber, never gives ; 

But, though the whole earth turn to coal, 
Then chiefly lives. 

There's a Divinity that shapes our ends, 
Rough-hew them how we will. 

All are needed by each one: 
Nothing is fair or good alone. 

Love sought is good, but given unsought is better. 

Our doubts are traitors, 
And make us lose the good we oft might win 
By fearing to attempt. 

Oh ! it is excellent 
To have a giant's strength ; but it is tyrannous 
To use it like a giant. 

How far that little candle throws his beams ! 
So shines a good deed in a naughty world ! 

Angels are bright still, though the brightest fell. 



204 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



Smooth runs the water where the brook is deep. 

True hope is swift, arid flies with swallow's wings ; 
Kings it makes prods : and meaner creatures, kings. 

The gods are just, and of our pleasant vices 
Make instruments to scourge us. 

For of the soul the body form doth take ; 
For soul is form, and doth the body make. 

How happy is he born and taught 
That serveth not another's will ; 

Whose armor is his honest thought, 
And simple truth his utmost skill ! 

Be wisely worldly, but not worldly-wise. 

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, 

Old Time is still a-flying; 
And this same flower that smiles to-day 

To-morrow will be dying. 

Only the actions of the just 

Smell sweet, and blossom in the dust. 

Attempt the end, and never stand to doubt: 
Xothing's so hard, but search will find it out. 

A happy soul will, all the way 
To heaven, find a summer's day. 



TRUTH. 



205 



Millions of spiritual creatures walk the earth 
Unseen, both when we wake and when we sleep. 

Good, the more communicated, the more abun- 
dant grows. 

Virtue can see to do what Virtue would 

By her own radiant light, though sun and moon 

Were in the flat sea sunk. 

He that hath light within his own clear breast 
May sit in midnight, and enjoy bright day ; 
But he that hides a dark soul and foul thoughts, 
Benighted walks under the mid-day sun. 

So dear to heaven is saintly chastity, 
That, when a soul is found sincerely so, 
A thousand liveried angels lackey her. 

They also serve who only stand and wait. 

A flower, when offered in the bud, 
Is no mean sacrifice. 

The rank is but the guinea's stamp : 
The man's the gold for all that. 

Never to blend our pleasure or our pride 
With sorrow of the meanest thing that feels. 



The best portion of a good man's life, — his lit- 



236 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGIOX. 

tie, nameless, unreuiembered acts of kindness and 
of love. 

Hushed be every thought that springs 
From out the bitterness of things. 

The charities that soothe and heal and bless 
Are scattered at the feet of man, like flowers. 

A mother is a mother still, — 
The holiest thing alive. 

Never, believe me, 
Appear the immortals, — 
Never alone. 

Often do the spirits 
Of great events stride on before the events ; 
And in to-day already walks to-morrow. 

Be thou the rainbow to the storms of life, — 
The evening beam that smiles the clouds away. 

The good are better made bv ill, 
As odors crushed are better still. 

A man's best things are nearest him; 
Lie close about his feet. 

'Tis better to have loved and lost 
Than never to have loved at all. 



TRUTH. 



207 



'Tis only when they spring to heaven, that angels 
Reveal themselves to you : they sit all day 
Beside you, and lie down at night by you, 
Who care not for their presence, muse or sleep ; 
And all at once they leave you, and you know them. 

Truth, crushed to earth, shall rise again ; 

The eternal years of God are hers : 
But Error, wounded, writhes with pain, 

And dies amid its worshippers. 

Fear God, and, where you go, men shall think 
they walk in hallowed cathedrals. 

If we meet no gods, it is because we harbor none. 

So much love, so much mind. 

If you want a fort, build a fort. 

The smallest candle fills a mile with its rays. 

Our fortunes are the fruit of our character. 

Every animal, wren or dragon, must make its 
own lair. 

Every thing is pusher or pushed. 

What we wish for in youth comes in heaps on 
us in old age. 

When an angel wishes to ride, any chip or 
pebble will bud, and shoot out winged feet, and 
serve him for a horse. 

Living, thou dost not live 

If Mercy's stream run dry : 
What Heaven hath given thee, dost thou freely 
give, 

Dying, thou dost not die. 



203 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION". 



Men might be better if we better deemed 

Of them: the worst way to improve the world 

Is to condemn it. 

The past is sacred ; it is God's, not ours : 
Let all of us do better if we can. 

Joys 

Are bubble-like ; what makes them bursts them 
too ; * 

And, like the Milky Way there, dim with stars, 
The soul which numbers most will shine the least. 

Sin is small and mean and barren : good 
Only is great and generous and fruitful. 

We must believe the best of every thing ; 
Love all below, and worship all above. 

Lowliness is the base of all the virtues ; 

And he who goes the lowest builds the safest : 

Our God keeps all his pity for the proud. 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



THE POWER OF TRUST. 
HOLY painter walked up and down his studio, 



J~\ stopping every now and then before his blank can- 
vas, taking up his brushes, and laying them down again to 
resume his walk. He was meditating the subject of a 
picture, and earnestly wishing in his heart that Heaven 
would give him one At length, in the still morning, a 
vision came before him of the Madonna, fairer than imagi- 
nation could have pictured her ; and under the feet of the 
Madonna was the head of Satan, looking as hideous as 
the Virgin was heavenly. The artist felt that this was 
the subject given him to paint. He took up his pallet 
immediately, mixed his colors with trembling hand, sat 
down before his easel, and began to paint. The hours 
flew by, and the setting sun shone on him as he bent 
lovingly over his task. At night, the lovely vision stood 
before him in his dreams. The break of day found him 
in his studio once more, impatient for the sunrise, that he 
might resume his sweet labor. Woek after week the 
work went on. increasing in beauty from hour to hour. 
Faithful in every feature, line, and hue, the blessed fig- 




14 



-10 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

ure of the Virgin came out: and it onlv remained to add 
the few last touches that were necessary to make it com- 
plete. One day, near the completion of his labor, he felt 
a chill creeping over him. and was aware of a gloomv 
presence in the room. Looking up from Lis picture, he 
saw the Adversary standing behind him. an i looking ear- 
nestly over his shoulder at his picture. He had come in 
to beg the artist not to paint him so hideous as he ap- 
peared in the vision, but to transfer to his dark face some 
of the sweet expression he had given to the Virgin. In 
return for this favor, Satan promised the artist anv rhing 
he would ask tor — wealth, fame, honor the praise of the 
world — it he would take but a line of grace, bat a 
shade of loveliness, but a gleam of light, from her counte- 
nance, and give it to his. In reply, the pious artist seized 
his pencil, and. in a moment of inspiration, dashed the 
Fiend's portrait with a more frightful expression, and 
touched the Virgin's with a more than celestial grace. 
The Adversary vanished with a hateial cry. 

The next day. he came again, but this time in another 
mood. He cursed the artist : he threatened : he assured 
him. that, if he did not comply with his wish, he would 
torment him piteously ; he would make him poor: he 
would make him miserable ; he would cover him with 
shame, and make him execrable in the eyes of all men. 
Again the artist took up his pencil : again the illumina- 
tion came : in an instant, the Fiend was more hideous, the 
Virgin more heavenly, than before. In a black, thick 
smoke, the Evil One vanished, and left the artist alone. 

And now the picture is finished : it is set up in the 
great cathedral : the whole town is there to see the mas- 
ter-work, the fame whereof had gone abroad through all 
the region. Silent among the people stands the artist, 
humble, and trembling with excitement. Suddenly there 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



211 



is a great noise, as of wings : all faces are turned upwards. 
It is the Adversary, who comes swooping down from the 
vast dome above their heads. He bears down on the 
artist, seizes him by the hair of his head, bears him aloft 
to the very height of the ceiling, holds him suspended 
there an instant, and then lets him fall through the dizzy 
distance upon the marble floor. There he lies, crushed, 
bleeding, senseless. But, even as the horror-stricken 
people gaze on him. the Virgin of his own picture reaches 
out her hand from the canvas, and, by a touch, lifts him 
up whole. The art he was faithful to saved him. 



TO DO GOD'S WILL IS TO BEHOLD GOD'S FACE. 

EPROBUS was by race a Canaanite. of a tribe cele- 
brated for strength and riereeness. He was a moun- 
taineer, huge in bulk, immense in stature, and terrible in 
look. Tired of the tame life he led among the hills, and 
despising the shepherd people among whom he lived, he 
left his wilderness, resolved that he would find the greatest 
prince in the world, and take service under him as a sol- 
dier. The most famous king of that day was Maximus. 
Report said that a greater than he did not reign on the 
earth. To him Reprobus went : and Maximus. beholding 
his stature and strength, gladly took him into his service, 
made him one of his select body-guard, and kept him 
always at court near his person. Many times. Maximus 
went to war with his enemies : and, whenever he went, 
Reprobus, the chief of his body-guard, gained great fame 




212 .4 CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



by his deeds of valor. He was the envy of all the army, 
and the favorite of the king. His name was a name of 
terror in all the lands round about. 

It chanced on a certain day, when the king was giving 
a great feast in honor of a victory which had cost much 
bloodshed, that his favorite minstrel recited a lay, in the 
course of which the Devil was often mentioned ; and the 
king, who was a Christian, made, each time the name was 
spoken, the sign of the cross on his forehead. Roprobus 
observed this with surprise ; and, when the feast was over, 
he asked the king why he made that sign, and what it 
meant. The king, at first, gave no answer ; but at last, 
when Reprobus insisted, and threatened to leave his ser- 
vice if he refused, he told him, in confidence, that the 
Devil, whose name was so often spoken, was his enemy, 
and the sign of the cross was a charm to prevent his 
doing him harm. Hearing this, Reprobus began to sus- 
pect that Maxim us was not the greatest king in the 
world. If he was afraid of the Devil, the Devil must be 
a greater lord than he ; and as he, Reprobus, was in 
search of the mightiest kin^ there was, he must go in 
search of the Devil. So he left Maximus, and went out 
to find his new master. 

Which way to go, he knew not ; for, though he found 
himself very soon in his dominions, no person could tell 
him where his Satanic Majesty held his court. Finally, 
after riding for many days, as he was passing through a 
gloomy desert-place, he saw a great band of warriors in 
black armor; and in the midst of them one figure, tall and 
terrible, with black plume, and eyes full of dark fire, who 
rode up to him, and cried fiercely, " Who art thou ? 
and whither art thou going ? " Reprobus told him his 
story ; and, when the grim knight heard him say that he 
wished to enter the service of the Devil, said, " You have 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



213 



found him you seek, then : I am the Devil. If you will 
enter my service, you shall be right welcome : I like such 
tall fellows as you, and will give you work enough." 

Behold the giant now, duly enrolled in the Devil's reti- 
nue ! There was work enough to do, to be sure ; and it 
was well done. Heprobus was not behind the rest in his 
zeal. Many a deed of biood he perpetrated ; many a 
good man he ruined; many a delicate woman he slew; 
many a sweet little child he dashed against the stones ; 
many a house of charity he burned to the ground ; many 
a caravan of pilgrims ho put to the sword. He never 
stopped at any outrage ; but, whatever he was bidden, he 
performed. In the Devil's service he continued several 
years; for none was found on earth stronger than he. 

But one day, as they ro ie on together, they came to a 
crucifix, which some priests had set up by the wayside, 
that travellers might be reminded, as they went, of their 
redemption. The master ot B,eprobus saw it afar off, 
and, before they reached it, turned off the road into the 
forest, and struck again into the highway farther on. 
Heprobus, much wondering at this, and failing to guess 
what it might mean, ventured to ask his lord, Satan, why he 
went so far out of his way at that particular spot. For 
some time, he received no answer ; but, on his insisting, the 
Devil replied, " Did you not observe the crucifix by the 
wayside ? " — " Certainly,'' said Heprobus; " but what had 
.that to do with it?" — "Every thing," said his master; 
u for that figure on the cross was the image of the Christ." 
" But who was the Christ ? " again asked the curious sol- 
dier : " anybody that you are afraid of'?" The Devil was 
obliged to tell him that he was .the great King of the other 
world, who would one day, he feared, put an end to his 
own kingdom. " Say you so ? " said Reprobus. " Then 
you are not the strongest king, after all ? I am very 



214 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



sorry: you have treated tne well ; but I must leave your 
service, and find this great King whose name makes you 
tremble." 

So Reprobus left the service of the Devil, and went in 
search of the Christ. But the Christ was hard to find. 
He journeyed far. and asked many questions. As it 
chanced, he came, after much wandering, to a lonely 
monastery, where lived many monks. They promised to 
show him the way to Christ. They took off his heavy ar- 
mor, and clothed him in a long black robe. They led 
away his war-horse ; they broke his spear, and buried his 
sword : they shaved the top of his head, and changed his 
heathen name of Reprobus the wicked lor the Christian 
name, Christopher the Christ-bearer. All this he did not 
much like ; but he liked still less the work they gave him to 
do. Praying was not so much to his taste as fighting. The 
huge giant, with his brawny limbs, found himself sadly out 
of place. The long prayers were very tiresome, and he 
could not see the use of them. The monks tried to teach 
him the mysteries of doctrine; but he could not un- 
derstand a word they said, for he had small brains. See- 
ing that he could neither pray nor study, that he was 
little more than a great bulk of body, they decided to 
put him to such uses as his immense power made him 
suitable for. 

Xow, hard by the monastery, there ran a strong stream 
of water, difficult to cross at any time, and, in the winter 
season* almost impossible. There was no bridge ; no ferry- 
boat, of course. By the side of this little river, Chris- 
topher built for himself a log-hut, and there lived alone, 
waiting for travellers to come seeking passage to the 
other side. These he took on his broad shoulders, and 
carried across. For a long time, he labored in this way 
as ferryman, summed" and winter, day and night, in 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



215 



storm and calm, bearing all who came. One black night 
in winter, Christopher lay in his hut, sheltered from the 
weather. It was bitterly cold: the wind roared furiously 
among the pine-trees ; the clouds drove across the sky ; 
the river, swollen by the rains, was a torrent. As the 
ferryman Lay wrapped up in his skins, there came to his 
ear a sound like the cry of a child. He raised his head 
to listen : it came again more distinctly than before. He 
went out, but could see nothing but the dark waves of the 
river, could hear nothing but the roar of the winds and 
waves. Thinking that his hearing had deceived him-, he 
went back to his hut, and tried to sleep ; but again the 
cry came, as of a child in distress. He went forth once 
more, down to the water's edge ; and there, on the steep 
bank, sat a little child, crying piteously, and praying to 
be carried over the stream. Christopher took the little 
one in his arms, carried him into the hut, lighted his fire, 
spread a warm bear-skin before it, and tried to make the 
child sleep till the morning. But the child would not be 
satisfied ; its cries became louder ; it would be carried 
across the stream at once. So Christopher, seeing there 
was nothing else to do, took his staff, made of the trunk of 
a pine-tree, placed the little boy securely on his shoulder, 
and began the passage. The water was deep ; the cur- 
rent was strong; the waves were high. He had scarcely 
made half the distance, when the burden he carried 
seemed so heavy, that he could scarcely stand under it. 
His limbs trembled ; his knees bent ; the sweat poured in 
streams from his body : still he staggered on, saying no 
word, till with prodigious effort, strained, and out or' 
breath, he reached the shore. 

" Who art thou ? " ho said to the child, as, lifting him 
from his shoulders, he placed him tenderly on the grass. 
But the child was no more a child : his form rose and 



216 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



dilated ; his face put on a wonderful expression ; his hair 
was like a glory ; his eves were like star£. It was the 
Christ who stood there, and said to the wondering giant, 
" I am the King thou seekest. Thou art, indeed, Christo- 
pher : thy service is accepted." 



THE LOVING EYE SEES BEAUTY EVERY- 



ESUS drew near to a Tillage with his companions. 



^ As they entered the gate, behold ! a crowd of people 
were gathered; and, from their gestures, it appeared that 
they were interested in something that was lying on the 
stones of the street. Making his way through the press, 
Jesus approached to see what it was ; and, lo ! dead on the 
stones, there lay a dog, who had been hunted down and 
killed. He had been mad. The people were making 
remarks on the poor creature, and, in various ways, were 
giving vent to their disgust. " How horrible he is to look 
at !" said one : " see the foam on his lips, the blood on his 
tongue and in his eyes ! " — "And his skin," said another ; 
" how rough and torn it is ! and how dusty too ! " — " But 
look at his ears, all slit and ragged ! See how his tongue 
is bitten, and what an ugly gash he has on his head!" 
" Ugh !" grunted a fourth ; " but look at the flies on him ! 
how they swarm ! how they buzz ! See them fight for 
that great sore place on his side ! " — " He is dead and 
rotting ! " — " Pah ! how he smells ! " While they talked 
thus, coming and going, holding their breath, and express- 
ing all kinds of disgust, Jesus looked on pityingly. Sud- 
denly he turned to the people, and said, " But see how 
pearly white his teeth are ! " They looked at him, and 
said, " Surely thou art the Christ ; for none but he would 
find beauty in any thing so hideous ! " 



WHERE. 




LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



217 



"HE PBAYETH BEST WHO LOVETH .BEST." 
I MONK was praying in his cell. The spirit of prayer 



was strong in him ; his heart was full, his feeling was 
earnest, his thoughts were quick ; he felt himself near to 
God; tears of gratitude filled his eyes; his voice trem- 
bled with emotion ; his face was glowing. He had never 
had such rapture in his prayer before : earth and all 
earthly things were forgotten ; men and all human beings 
passed from his mind : heaven was in his soul ; and, as he 
prayed, heaven opened on his vision. The angels seemed 
all around him. In full view, palpable to sight, stood 
the Madonna, looking down on him with tender eyes. 
Absorbed in contemplation of the beautiful presence, 
and happy as an angel himself, he hardly heard the bell 
that told him he was wanted for some duty at the door. 
It rang again. Could he leave the blessed place for the 
cold air outside ? Could he leave his blissful prayer, and 
go out on some common work of charity, probably to 
hear some old woman's story, or help some beggar in his 
rags? There was the bright presence of the Virgin full 
before him : she might vanish at any moment. ; could he 
go while she staid ? In a moment, these thoughts passed 
through his mind : but he remembered his vow ; and, before 
the bell sounded a third time, he was at the door, answer- 
ing the call. It was a miserable beggar with a long tale 
of distress, and a prayer for charity. He listened pa- 
tiently to the tale ; he relieved the want : then he went 
back to his cell, expecting to find all that glory departed. 
To his surprise, there stood the Virgin just as before, 
only, if that were possible, more beautiful in face and ex- 
pression. Her lips opened ; and a voice said to him, 
" Hadst thou not gone, I had not remained." 




218 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



NEVER DESPISE SMALL THINGS. 

"TESUS was walking with his disciples along the Ingli- 
*J road towards a village now not very distant. They were 
talking, as they loved to talk, about the Master, and about 
themselves, and about the new kingdom that was to be 
set up soon, in which they were to have the first places 
and the chief honors. They carried their heads high ; 
for they were thinking of crowns and sceptres and 
thrones and body-guards, palaces to live in, fine clothes 
to wear, and delicacies to eat. As they talked on, full of 
hope, and warm with excitement, Jesus fell behind a few 
steps, and became absorbed in his own thoughts. 

Suddenly, one of the company struck with his foot some 
hard object that lay hidden in the dust of the road. It 
was an old, rusty, worn horse-shoe, that had been cast by 
the steed of some Roman officer. There was a moment's 
pause ; but, seeing what it was, the high-minded travel- 
lers spurned it with their feet, as not being worth picking 
up, and, resuming their conversation, went proudly on. 
Jesus noticed their action, marked where the horse-shoe 
lay, and, on coming to the place, quietly stooped, picked 
it up, and put it into the fold of his robe. 

They staid but a few moments in the village ; but 
Jesus took occasion to stop, unobserved by his companions, 
at a stall in the fruit-market, where he exchanged his 
old iron shoe for some cherries. These he put in his 
large sleeve, and rejoined his friends. They left the vil- 
lage, and were out on the high-road again. The day be- 
came sultry ; the soil was parched ; there was no water to 
be seen ; there was no tree to afford them shade. After 
a time, they became silent, and doggedly stumbled on, 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE, 



210 



their eyes bent vacantly on the ground. Jesus walked a 
few steps in advance of the rest. Presently, without 
looking round or saying a word, he dropped a cherry. 
It was quickly pounced upon by Peter, though it made 
his tired back ache sorely to stoop so low. In a minute 
or two, another cherry dropped, and down went Peter 
again : and so on, every few minutes, Jesus let tali a cherry, 
— only one at a time ; and, each time a cherry fell, some 
tall form was bent to pick it up. When Jesus thought he 
had made his companions stoop often enough, he turned, 
and gave them the remainder of the fruit. Most grateful 
it was to their thirsty mouths. " But where did you get 
them ? " asked Peter. Then Jesus reminded them of the 
old horse-shoe, told them what he had done with it, and 
said, " If you had not been too proud to stoop once 
when you were strong, you would not have been obliged 
to stoop so many times when you were weak." 



CHARITY TO THE SINNING. 

4 GREAT many years ago, in a monastery of nuns, 
there lived a young girl named Beatrice. She was 
very beautiful ; but she was no more beautiful than she 
was good. She prayed to the Holy Virgin constantly, 
and was very much devoted to ail pious duties in her 
service. So great was her piety, that, though young, she 
became stewardess, or housekeeper, of the convent ; had 
charge of the money ; purchased the needful supplies ; and 
gave alms at the door. ^For some time, she filled this 
place with equal wisdom and generosity, making herself 



220 A CHILL'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



much beloved by all in the house, and by all out of it 
who knew her. Her life was very quiet: she knew 
nothing about the ways or the pleasures of the world. 
Her friends were all inside the convent : she never went 
abroad ; and it was only now and then that she saw the 
face of a man. 

One day there came to the monastery, on business, a 
young man, who saw the fair girl, loved her, and wanted 
her to go away with him. He told her all about, the gay 
world she had never seen ; the cities, the monuments, the 
rich parks and gardens, the crowded streets, the bright 
shops, the fairs, the games, the merry frolics, the dances, 
till her fancy was full of dreams. But she knew her 
duty, and loved her work ; and, though she listened to the 
pleasant stories, she refused to go away with the young 
man. Still the young man came and begged ; still she 
listened and refused for a long time. At length, she could 
resist no longer the prayers of her lover, and made up 
her mind to leave the convent. She came to the altar 
of the Holy Virgin, her protectress, and said, " Dear 
heavenly Mother, I have served you as well as I could all 
this time : now I am going into the world ; and, as I can- 
not serve you longer, I leave with you my keys." Hav- 
ing said this, she placed her keys on the altar, and went 
away with her friend. 

She saw the world ; she went into its gayeties ; she 
shared its pleasures ; and, alas ! she learned its vices too, 
and stained herself with its sins. Her friend left her : 
lonely, poor, forsaken, she wandered about, sinking from 
one degree of misery to another, till her heart was bro- 
ken, and she was ready to die. Not knowing where to 
go for bread, and not. daring to return to the convent she 
had left, she supported herse^ 1 as well as she could by 
beggary and vice. At last, after years spent in this way, 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



221 



she said to herself, " I will go to my convent, and beg a 
place there to die in. They will not remember me ; for 
my beauty is gone, my looks are altered, and they will 
surely pity one who is so poor and wretched." 

She went to the gate, and knocked. The same old 
portress answered the call who used to wait there when 
she was stewardess. She did not recognize the pale beg- 
gar in the faded rags. k ' Do you remember Beatrice," 
asked the poor girl, " who was once mistress of this house ? " 
— " Perfectly." replied the portress. " She is still here; 
she is still the mistress of the house. A wise, honest, and 
holy woman is Dame Beatrice : she has lived in the convent 
from her childhood, and has never had dispute with man 
or woman." Beatrice, hearing these words. ^ ould hardly 
trust her ears, and was turning to go away, feeling that 
the woman was laughing at her, when the Holy Mother 
herself appeared, looking as she might have looked, and, 
calling her in. said to her, M My daughter, these fifteen 
years that you have been absent, I have taken your place, 
and done your duty. You left the keys with me : take 
them again ; resume your office. No one knows of your 
absence or your shame." 



MORE WAYS THAN ONE OF DOING GOOD. 
rinHERE were two brothers, twins, and only children 



1 of their parents. They grew up together as chil- 
dren, and were so much alike in looks and manners and 
childish ways, that only their parents knew them apart. 
As they grew older, they still looked alike ; but their 




222 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



tastes and talents were very different. One was fond of 
study, and particularly of the study of medicine ; the 
other was fond of music, and spent all his time in learn- 
ing to play on the violin. Both were kind, tender- 
hearted, and good ; both seemed happiest when they 
were doing something for poor and sad people. In course 
of time, the first became a great physician. The fame of 
his knowledge and skill was spread all over the great 
city where he lived, and all over the country beyond. 
Rich carriages stood before his door, and poor people 
knocked at it ; and, while the rich gave him money, the 
poor gave him thanks, which he valued as much as the 
money. Many were the cures that he wrought ; many 
the people he raised up, as it were, from the dead ; 
many the sufferers whom he relieved ; many the parents 
that he restored to their children, and the children that 
he restored to their parents. Noble lords and ladies sent 
him splendid gifts ; kings bestowed favor on him. His 
name everywhere was spoken with blessings. 

All this time his twin-brother was poor, going about 
from town to town with his violin, playing in the public 
squares to the people, playing to sick people in hospitals, 
or amusing children out of school. He was happy and 
gay and innocent, very tender-hearted and gentle. Men 
called him idler and vagabond ; only a foolish fiddler, 
who was of no use in the world : but many poor people 
and sick people were made happy by his music ; many 
dying people were cheered by the sound of his violin ; 
and many sad people, for whom the great doctor could do 
nothing at all, were comforted, and blessed the sweet 
musician and his melodies. 

One day, the great physician was called to attend a 
poor man who was dying in a distant part of the city. 
The house was low, dark, and comfortless ; it was ill 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



223 



furnished.; the fire had nearly gone out on the hearth. 
Xo friends were there ; but alone on his hard bed, sitting 
up on it, pale and weak, with a violin in his hand, was a 
poor worn-out man. The doctor came in, and knew his 
brother. They met at last, after many years. The poor 
player, worn oat by poverty, and by travelling from place 
to place, needed his brother's skill ; the great doctor, sad 
from seeing so much suffering and death, and from thinking 
how little he could do to help his fellow-men, needed his 
brother's music. So they helped each other. The doctor 
gave strength to the player's body ; the player comforted 
the doctor's heart. And which did the other the most 
good, or which did the most good in the world, nobody 
will ever be able to tell. 



CHAEITY THE TRUE S AINTLENE SS . 

A CERTAIN man had passed a long life in a desert 
JLJL cave, far away from men and women and little 
children. He spent his time in fasting and praying, and 
performing severe tasks which did no good to anybody. 
His study was to make himself as miserable as he could 
in this world, in order that he might be happy in the next 
world. He wanted to be a great saint. Men thought he 
was, and the fame of his saintliness was abroad over all 
the land. He liked this very much, and was proud 
enough because he was so much more holy than other 
people. But he was anxious that God should think him 
a great saint too, and holier than anybody else in the 
world. One day, when he was now an old man, he felt 



224 



A GHUjyS BOOK OF RELIGION 



so much puffed up with the notion of his holiness, that he 
asked the Lord what saint there was anywhere greater 
than himself, that he might go and find him out. and learn 
of him how to be more saintly. 

All the time he was asking this, he felt quite sure that 
no greater saint existed on the face of the earth than he 
was ; and he was certain that the Lord would tell him so. 
In fact, he was seeking for a compliment. But a compli- 
ment he did not get. On the contrary, the Lord, who 
did not at all approve of his conceit of his own goodness, 
told him. that, if he would excel all others in virtue and 
sanctity, he must do his best to resemble a certain poor 
minstrel, who went singing from door to door in the 
nearest village. 

The holy man was in great astonishment at hearing 
such words : but he arose, took up his staff, and went forth 
in haste to rind the minstrel. He found him singing in 
the market-place, and. greeting him. said very earner.;. 
" Tell me, I pray, my brother, what good works thou hast 
done in thy lifetime, and by what prayers and penances 
thou hast made thyself acceptable to God." The man. 
amazed at being so addressed, hung his head in shame, as 
he replied. " I pray thee, good father, do not mock me. 
I have done no good works: and as to praying, dear me ! 
poor sinner that I am. I do not know how: I am not 
worthy to do it. I do nothing but go about from door to 
door, amusing the people with my flute." 

But the holy man would not be put off in this way. 
The Lord had told him that this man was a greater saint 
than he was. and he knew of but one kind of saint. — a 
man who passed his days in prayer and fasting. So he 
insisted, saying. "Nay: but some good works thou must 
have done in the course of thy life to raise thee so high in 
the Lord's regard." Still the minstrel replied. " No : 1 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



225 



can remember no good thing that I ever did. I have 
never deserved any praise or honor from the Lord, or 
from my fellow-men." — " But hast th >u always led this 
idle, vagabond life ? Hast thou always followed the 
worthless trade thou followest now ? Thou art a beggar, 
to be sure : that is something. But men of your trade 
may become beggars by their vice and their riotous liv- 
ing : then their poverty is no merit. Did you beggar 
yourself so ? " — " Oh. no ! " said the man. ; * I will tell you 
how I became poor. I saw, one day, long ago, a woman 
running about from place to place, distracted with fear 
and grief. Her husband and children had been sold into 
slavery to pay a debt. She had no home, no money ; and 
she knew not where to go. She was very beautiful too, 
which made the matter worse ; for wicked men were in 
pursuit of her. I protected her from the villains, and 
took the poor sad creature home to my cottage, out of 
harm's way. I had laid by some money which I did not 
need, — about enough to ransom her husband and children. 
This I gave to her for that purpose : they were redeemed 
from slavery ; and now they all live together in their old 
home in the city. This explains my poverty ; for, at 
present, the only way I have to earn my bread is this : I 
go from door to door with my flute, and the people give 
me what they can. This is the only thing I can recol- 
lect about myself : and there is no great merit in that ; 
for any honest man would have done the same thing. 
Besides, it happened so long ago, that I have almost for- 
gotten it." 

The holy man, hearing the minstrel's story, burst into 
tears, and said, ' ; In all my long life, I have never done any 
thing so good as this deed of thine which thou hast almost 
forgotten, and dost not think worth speaking of ; yet thou 
art nothing but a poor piper, and men call me a saint." 
15 



226 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



SHALL WE EVER TIRE OF HEAVEN ? 

A PIOUS monk, who had tried all his life to live so as 
to be worthy of heaven, had the horrible thought 
cross his mind, that heaven might at last be as weari- 
some as earth was. He was tired of every thing about 
him, even of things that were sweet and beautiful. He 
was tired of his food and drink ; he was tired of duties ; 
he was tired of getting up in the morning, and going to 
rest at night ; he was tired of seeing the sun rise and set ; 
he was tired of the grass and the flowers and the trees 
and the running brooks ; he was tired of the forms and 
faces of his fellow-men. All he saw and heard and knew 
of had ceased to give him pleasure. He was charmed for 
a little while, and soon the charm ceased. Might it not 
be the same in heaven ? Might he not become just as 
tired of hearing the songs of the angels as he had become 
of hearing the songs of his fellow-men ? Would not the 
celestial landscape lose its charm at last ? Would the 
sunshine on the plains of light seem as beautiful to him 
when he had lived in it a hundred years ? If it would 
not, if heaven was at length to be as stupid as the earth 
was, what was the use, he thought, of wishing so much to 
go there ? 

Thinking thus sadly, he walked one evening, just after 
sunset, into a deep forest which was not far from the 
monastery where he lived. Seating himself on a mossy 
stone, he was soon lost in musing, and forgot in what 
place he was. Suddenly, from the branch of a tree di- 
rectly over his head, a nightingale began to sing. He 
listened to the sweet, sad song, forgetting every thing, — 
his cares, his duties, his sorrows, even his own tormenting 



LEGEXDS OF VIRTUE, 



227 



thoughts. His mind was still; his very heart was silent 
as he listened. He closed his eyes, and gave himself 
wholly up to the delicious notes. The song was a short 
one, and the bird kept singing it over and over and over 
again, — just the same notes all the time : but, each time 
he sang it, it seemed sweeter than it did the time before ; 
and he found himself expecting the strain as eagerly, when 
it had been sung a thousand times, as if he had never 
heard it at all. He sat thus, listening and longing, for 
the space, it seemed to him, of an hour ; then, remember- 
ing his duties at the evening service in the monastery, he 
started, heaved a sigh, and bent his steps homeward. 

As he drew near, things did not look as they did when 
he saw them last. The young trees had grown large and 
tall ; the garden had run to waste ; the brook was almost 
dry ; the fences looked old, and, in some places, were 
broken down ; the orchard-wall was dilapidated; there 
were no fowls or domestic animals about. He approached 
the gate : it was off the hinges. Near it stood a very old 
man, whom he thought he remembered to have seen be- 
fore, but who did not seem to know him at all. " Who 
are you ? " said he to the monk, as he approached. " I 
am Brother Benedict : don't you know Brother Bene- 
dict ? " — " Brother Benedict is dead long since," said the 
old man : " at least, we suppose he is dead. He went 
away one evening, after sundown ; and we have never 
seen or heard of him since.' , — " But I am Brother Bene- 
dict," said the monk. " I went away this very evening, 
after sundown, about an hour ago ; and now I am come 
back for evening prayer." — " We said the evening prayer 
without you," answered the old monk ; " and many even- 
ing prayers and morning prayers we have said since that 
time ; for it must be thirty years ago. We have all grown 
old. I was one of the younger brothers, and you see how 



228 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



old I am. Some of us are dead and gone (you may see 
their graves over yonder in the meadow), and some are 
very aged and weak ; w T e can do very little work out of 
doors : you see how all things have gone to decay. But 
now tell me where you have been all these years. Have 
you been travelling in foreign lands ? Have you been 
to Jerusalem and the Holy Sepulchre ? " 

Then Benedict told him where he had been, and what he 
had been doing. He, too, had grown very old ; but he did 
not know it : for the nightingale's song had made him lose 
all sense of time and change, of hunger and thirst, of cold 
and heat, summer and winter, sunshine and shower, day 
and night. He had listened a generation, and thought it 
only an hour. He never feared again that he should tire 
of the joys of heaven. 



THE INDIAN BOY AND THE FIRE. 

ONCE upon a time, the lightning from heaven fell 
upon a tree standing in the old primeval forest, and 
kindled it so that it flamed on high. And it happened 
that a young hunter, who had lost his path in that wilder- 
ness, beheld the gleam of the flames from a distance ; and, 
forcing his way through the thicket, he flung himself down 
in rapture before the blazing tree. 

" O divine light and warmth ! " he exclaimed, stretch- 
ing forth his arms, " O blessed, O heaven-descended 
Fire ! let me thank thee ; let me adore thee. 

" Giver of a new existence, quickening through every 
pulse, how lost, how cold, how dark, have I dwelt without 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



229 



thee ! Restorer of my life, remain ever near me, and, 
through thy benign and celestial influence, send love and 
joy to illuminate my soul." 

And the Fire answered, and said to him, " It is true 
that my birth is from heaven ; but I am now, through 
mingling with earthly elements, subdued to earthly in- 
fluences: therefore beware how thou choose me for thy 
friend, without having first studied my twofold nature. O 
youth ! take heed, lest what appears to thee now a bless- 
ing may be turned at some future time to fiery pain and 
death." And the youth replied, " No, oh, no ! thou 
blessed Fire : this could never be. Am I, then, so sense- 
less, so inconstant, so thankless ? Oh, believe it not ! Let 
me stay near thee ; let me be thy priest to watch and 
tend thee truly. Ofttimes in my wild wintry life, when 
the chill darkness encompassed me and the ice-blast 
lifted my hair, have I dreamed of the soft summer breath, 
of the sunshine that should light up the world within 
me and the world around me. But still that time came 
not. It seemed ever far, far off ; and I had perished ut- 
terly before the light and the warmth had reached me, 
had it not been for thee." 

Thus the youth poured forth his soul ; and the Fire 
answered him in murmured tones, while her beams, with 
a softer radiance, played over his cheek and brow : u Be 
it so, then : yet do thou watch me constantly, and minis- 
ter to me carefully ; neglect me not ; leave me not to my- 
self, lest the light and warmth in which thou so delightest 
fail thee suddenly, and there be no redress. And, oh, watch 
thyself also ! Beware lest thou too ardently stir up my 
impatient, fiery being ! beware lest thou heap too much 
fuel upon me ! once more, beware, lest, instead of life and 
love and joy, I bring thee only death and burning pain ! " 
And the youth passionately vowed to keep her behest ; 



230 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



and, in the beginning, all went well. How often, for hours 
together, would he lie gazing, entranced, toward the radi- 
ant, beneficent Eire, basking in her warmth, and throw- 
ing, now a leafy spray, now a fragment of dry wood, anon 
a handful of odorous gums as incense, upon the flame, 
which, gracefully curling and waving upwards, quivering 
and sparkling, seemed to whisper in return divine oracles ! 
or he fancied he beheld, while gazing into the glowing 
depths, marvellous shapes, fiery visions dancing and glan- 
cing along. Then he would sing to her songs full of love ; 
and she, responding to the song she had herself inspired, 
sometimes replied in softest whispers, so loving and so 
low, that even the jealous, listening woods could not over- 
hear. At other times she would shoot up suddenly in rap- 
turous splendor like a pillar of light, and reveal to him 
all the wonders and the beauties which lay around him, 
hitherto veiled from his sight. 

But at length, as he became accustomed to the glory 
and the warmth, and nothing more was left for the Fire 
to bestow, or her light to reveal, then he began to weary, 
and to dream again of the morning, and to long for the 
sunbeams. And it was to him as if the Fire stood between 
him and the sun's light ; and he reproached her there- 
for, and became moody and ungrateful : and the Fire was 
no longer the same, but unquiet and changeful, sometimes 
flickering unsteadily, sometimes throwing out a lurid 
glare. And when the youth, forgetful of his ministry, 
left the flame unfed and unsustained, so that ofttimes she 
drooped and waned, and crept in dying gleams along the 
damp ground, his heart would fail him with a sudden re- 
morse, and he would cast on the fuel with such a rough 
and lavish hand, that the indignant Fire hissed thereat, 
and burst forth in a smoky, sullen gleam, then died away 
again. Then the youth, half sorrowful, half impatient, 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



231 



would remember how bright, how glowing, how dazzling, 
was the flame in those former happy days when it played 
over his chilled and wearied limbs, and shed its warmth 
upon his brow ; and he desired eagerly to recall that once- 
inspiring glow. And he stirred up the embers violently 
till they burned him ; and then he grew angry ; and then 
again he wearied of all the watching and the care which 
the subtle, celestial, tameless element required at his 
hand : and at length, one day, in a sullen mood, he 
snatched up a pitcher of water from the fountain, and 
poured it hastily on the yet living flame. 

For one moment, it arose, blazing, towards heaven, shed 
a last gleam upon the pale brow of the youth, and then 
sank down in darkness, extinguished forever. 

From Mrs. Jameson's Commonplace Booh. 



POWER OF THE DIVINE CHILD. 

IT is recorded of* Jesus in certain very old books', that, 
when he was an infant, he was taken by his parents 
down into Egypt to escape the wrath of King Herod, 
who feared lest he should grow up to be a powerful 
enemy. It was a long and tiresome journey through 
solitudes and over barren places infested by wild beasts. 
His father was an old man, and his mother was a delicate 
woman. They were too poor to hire an escort, or even 
to pay a servant to take care of the child. Their donkey 
was not strong enough to carry much luggage or food in 
addition to the burden of the mother and babe ; so that 
they must expect to be often hungry, and almost always 



232 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



in danger. At this time, says the old -story, all things wait- 
ed on the loving child, and were ready to serve him ; all 
nature was kind ; the very beasts were friendly ; the hot 
days became shorter, and the still, cool nights became 
longer ; and a troop of invisible angels waited on the 
little company in their flight, to protect them. It chanced 
that one day, in the midst of the heat, they came to a 
cavern, whose wide mouth invited them to enter. The 
mother, with her child, dismounted from the donkey ; the 
beast was turned loose ; and the travellers went into the 
cave. They had penetrated, however, a very little way, 
when a terrible hissing came to their ears ; and, in the 
distance, they saw what seemed to be huge balls of red 
fire. The cavern was the home of a brood of serpents. 
Their vast coils rose and fell like waves of the sea ; their 
scales glistened like steel plates, and rustled like armor ; 
on their crests rose plumes of horrid hair, and from their 
mouths darted and quivered arrowy tongues. There 
seemed to be legions of them ; and they looked as if they 
swarmed up from the naming centre of the earth. 

Joseph and Mary were sore afraid, and would gladly 
have run away : but terror kept them still ; and, if it had 
not, the serpents would have moved faster than they, and 
would soon have overtaken them. The dragons — for 
such they were — made a horrid sound on seeing the trav- 
ellers enter the cavern, and would have devoured them 
instantly. Jesus, says the old story, had been asleep in 
his mother's arms ; but waking at the moment, and open- 
ing his great mysterious eyes, he looked steadily at the 
monsters. That child's look they could not bear ; their 
heads sank to the ground; their crests fell; their eyes 
closed : slowly they crawled back into the dark ; and 
the travellers had no more fear. 

In the unfrequented parts of the journey, where the 



LEGEXDS OF VIRTUE. 



233 



way was crooked, and hard to find, or where the dangers 
were especially great, a strange escort, it is said, closed 
about the feeble company to guard and guide them. 
Lions and panthers from the wilderness, wolves and 
jackals, gambolled in front of them, or gravely marched 
behind. Harmless animals, too, joined the procession, — 
the wild asses and goats from the rocks, with their udders 
full of milk. They allowed him to ride on their backs ; and 
many a weary mile they made pleasant with their awk- 
ward, kindly ways. This did not last always; for some- 
times the travellers were alone in the wide wilderness, 
— alone with the white sand, and the short, dry grass, 
and the rocks, and the terrible sun, which pierced them 
with its beams like a spear. The shade of a small tree 
was a blessing they could not be enough thankful for ; 
and they were very few. 

When they had been out many days, and no rain had 
fallen, no cloud had shaded the sun, Mary, one hot day 
towards noon, saw a tree in the distance. " Let us go 
there quickly," she cried to Joseph, " and rest a while in 
the shade of it ! " They made haste to the palm-tree, and 
stopped. The mother and child alighted, and sat down at 
the foot of it. She was very tired, and her lips were 
parched. As she turned her eyes upward, she saw its 
branches, heavy with fruit ; and she sighed, " Oh that 
I might have some of the fruit that is hanging there 
above my head ! " Joseph replied, " I wonder that you 
can say that, when you see how high the branches are 
from the ground. I am more anxious to get water ; for 
our flasks are empty, and there is no fountain near : we 
may perish from thirst." On this, the child Jesus, lying 
on the bosom of his mother, smiled sweetly, and looked up 
at the tree, as if he would say, " Good tree, why do you 
not let down your branches, and drop your fruit into my 



234 A CHILD'S BOOK OF BELIGIOX. 



mother's mouth ? 99 The tender, pleading look drew the 
tree towards the child ; the branches came lovingly down ; 
and the dates, fresh and sweet, lay in heaps before the 
little company. They ate. and were satisfied. The moth- 
er blessed the sweet child, whose love made even the palm- 
tree return love to it. The tree was not content to give 
its fruit only ; for when it had raised itself again, and stood 
tall and straight as it had been before, it sent forth from 
its roots the most delicious spring of cool, sparkling water. 
Then their hearts were glad indeed. They bathed their 
hands and faces in the bubbling stream ; they quenched 
their thirst ; they gave drink to their faithful beast ; they 
filled their flasks ; thev sat long, listening to the gentle 
soothing song of the fountain, which made music in the 
air. Then they thanked God, and prepared to go on 
their way. As they left the place, an angel came, broke 
a twig from the tree, and carried it up to heaven to 
bloom in paradise. 

But their way was not yet wholly free from dangers. 
There were waste places to be passed over, which were 
said to be infested by robbers. As they drew near to 
one of these, Joseph and Mary said, " We will travel over 
it by night : then we shall not be seen." But. lo ! midway 
they came suddenly on a company of robbers asleep by 
the roadside. Two of them, wakened by the sound of their 
animal, started up. Their names were Titus and Du- 
machus. Titus said to Dumachus. u Let us not disturb 
our comrades, nor let us molest these travellers. Do 
allow them to pass quietly on." 

But Dumachus said. "No : they may be rich. Besides, 
if one of our companions should happen to stir, and see 
what we were about, and tell the rest, we should lose our 
lives as well as our booty.*' — " Nay," replied Titus : " they 
are sound asleep ; do not be afraid of their waking. Here 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



235 



are forty gold-pieces ; take them : let the travellers go, 
and say no more about it." So Dumachus took the 
money, and the travellers passed on. Thirty years 
after, Jesus hung on the cross with two thieves, one on 
each hand. One of them was full of blasphemy ; but the 
other turned his dying eyes to Jesus,- and said, ik Lord, 
remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom." 
Jesus looked on him, and saw Titus, — the same kind 
robber who had saved them in the desert. His heart was 
touched, and he said, " Yes : I will remember thee. This 
day thou shalt be with me in paradise." 

Yet again, as they journeyed, they were in danger 
of falling into the hands of robbers. A large troop was 
riding a short distance in advance of them, moving 
slowly, because they were loaded with plunder taken 
from a caravan they had just attacked. As the robber- 
band marched on, suddenly they seemed to hear be- 
hind them a great noise, as of horsemen armed, scouring 
the plain. There were the ringing of weapons, the rattle 
of bridles, the clatter of hoofs, the notes of the trumpet 
sounding a charge, and the confused murmur of many 
steeds and men. The robbers said apart, one to another, 
"It is the king with his army : we must fly ! " And fly 
they did immediately, leaving the booty, and all their 
prisoners to shift for themselves as they could. They 
were loosening one another's bonds, and picking out the 
goods that belonged to them, when Joseph and Mary and 
the little child appeared. ik Where," they exclaimed in 
great wonder to Joseph, — " where is the great king, 
whose host we heard, and whose coming has frightened 
the robbers away, and delivered us ? " 

" The Divine Child is the King," said Joseph : " I know 
of no other. 

All things work together for good to them that love 
God. 



236 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



THE DIVINE CHILD AT PLAY. 

THE old story-tellers who relate these wonderful things 
about Jesus did not meau to tell simply wonderful 
things, but meant to tell sweet things, that showed a 
lovely disposition in the little child. They liked to think 
of him at his play with other children of the village. 
They saw no reason why, because he was so good, he 
should be sober and grave ; why he should not laugh and 
sing, and be merry : quite the other way. It seemed to 
them natural that he should be even merrier than other 
children, because he was so good. Why not ? Should 
not a pure heart be happy ? Should not a loving heart 
be joyous ? Should not a simple, trusting heart be full 
of song ? Jesus, when a child, they said, sported like a 
child. Sometimes they imagined him as amusing him- 
self in his father's workshop, busy with hammer and saw, 
making tables or chairs, or nailing pieces of wood together 
in the form of a cross ; but more often they thought of 
him as the centre of a merry group of little people busy 
by the bank of a stream, or in the garden, making fig- 
ures of clay. On one occasion, they tell that he fash- 
ioned, along with the rest, a great number of sparrows 
from the soft mud of a brook. When they were finished, 
the boys placed them on a fence, all in a row, and said 
among themselves, " What shall we do with them now 
afhat they are made ? " One cried, " Let us stand off at 
a distance, and throw stones at them ; and he that hits 
the greatest number shall be our chief." Another ex- 
claimed, " No, no ! let us not do that ; let us leave them 
where are, and see how long they will sit on the fence. " 
A third thought it would be a good idea for each to carry 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



237 



his bird home, and keep it in a safe place. When all had 
spoken, and no plan could be agreed on, Jesus said, 
" Why should we make things, and then destroy them V 
Suppose we make them fly away, and enjoy themselves 
in the air." The boys broke out into laughter at the 
idea of mud-sparrows with wings. But Jesus breathed 
on them, and away they flew out of sight. The old 
story goes on to say, that the children were afraid of their 
wonderful companion because he had such power. They 
should have loved him because he had such goodness. 
He would give all the happiness he could. He was un- 
willing that even a mud-sparrow should be nothing more 
than a mud-sparrow. The loving heart that would give 
life and happiness to the smallest creatures often gives 
the power to do it. A tender sympathy will sometimes 
make the dying live. 



THE DIVINE CHILD WITH HIS COMPANIONS. 
TI^HE story of the mud-sparrows shows how kind the 



I heavenly Child was to inanimate things. He was a 
giver of life and joy. He would bless every thing his 
Father had made ; and he would make nothing himself, 
except to bless it. If he was so noble towards his play- 
things, how noble must he not have been towards his 
playmates ! 

One of the neighbors had a little boy about the age of 
Jesus, whose name was Judas. It was the same Judas, 
who, as a man, joined the company of Jesus' friends, and 
afterward betrayed him. He was a bad boy always. 




238 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



His temper was so violent, that none liked to play with 
him ; and it was a common saving all through the village, 
that Judas had a devil inside of him. His favorite trick 
was to bite all who came near him. No punishment 
would correct him of this bad habit. His parents de- 
spaired of his mending. The neighbors were afraid of 
him, and kept their children out of his way. One day it 
chanced, that, as Jesus and his little friends were at play 
together, this Judas appeared. His mother had sent 
him out, thinking that the influence of Jesus, whose 
sweetness was favorable over the neighborhood, might be 
wholesome for him, and perhaps cure his terrible temper. 
As he came into the circle, a dead silence fell upon the 
merry-makers. The laughter ceased. The lads one by- 
one crept away, and Jesus was left alone. The sight of 
him, as he stood still, made Judas more violent than ever: 
he was beside himself with rage. He uttered a fearful 
cry, and, rushing on Jesus, tried to bite him ; but a strange 
power kept him away. Again and again he tried, gnash- 
ing his teeth, and foaming at his mouth ; but still he did 
not succeed. Jesus stood, pale and quiet, looking at him, 
with his great blue eves shining through their tears of 
pity, and seeming to look into his very heart. Failing at 
last to strike him with his teeth, Judas put on a cunning 
smile % and creeping close to the calm, beautiful boy, he 
: dealt him a severe blow in the side. The tears of pity 
in the great blue eyes changed to tears of pain ; a little 
cry escaped from the sweet lips ; but. in an instant, the 
noble boy's arms were thrown round the neck of the fu- 
rious lad, and a tender voice was murmuring in his ear 
words of forgiveness. On the instant, Satan went out of 
Judas for that time, and for many days. He became a 
good boy, and followed Jesus as a disciple, till avarice 
and ambition seized upon him, and Satan once more en- 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



239 



tered into him. This Judas was Judas the betrayer; 
and the spear that pierced the side of Jesus on the cross 
entered at the same spot where the boy Judas struck. 

Jesus was always kind to his playmates. It is related 
in these quaint old books, that once, on a beautiful sum- 
mer's day, he was making merry with his companions in 
a lovely grove just outside of the village. They were 
playing king, and Jesus was king. They had made a 
throne of soft green turf, heaped up with wild-flowers, 
and placed Jesus upon it. On his head he wore a crown 
of palm-leaves. In his hand he held a palm-branch. A 
chain of white lilies was round his neck. His bright hair 
flowed over his shoulders in thick golden curls. The 
little boys and girls pretended to be subjects of the beau- 
tiful boy. They marched before him, blowing their little 
trumpets of reeds. They exercised before him as sol-~ 
diers. They brought requests to him, bending their sun- 
ny heads and their knees. 

Whoever passed that way, whether man, woman, or 
child, must stop, and pay homage to the child-monarch. 
If they did not wish to come, if they were tired, or in haste, 
a dozen little hands laid hold on them, and dragged them 
gayly up to the foot of the mimic throne ; and, when once 
there, no one was unwilling to salute the lovely boy with 
the noble face and the great eyes of heavenly blue. 

They had played in this way a long time, when there 
came along some men , bearing a sick boy on a bier. He 
was very*ale and faint, and looked as if he would die in 
a moment. The children greeted the funeral-procession 
gravely, and said to the men, " You must stop : you can- 
not go farther till you have saluted our king." The 
men were annoyed at being brought to a halt in this way, 
when they were in great haste to carry the sick boy home 
to his mother ; but the children insisted that they should 



240 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



not go on till they had saluted their king. The bearers 
protested that they must go on ; that the lad might die 
before he could be seen by a physician : they had not a 
moment to lose ; and, even if the case w^re less urgent 
than it was. they could not stay for sport. Still the chil- 
dren would not give way ; come they must, and do hom- 
age to their king. So they came, and set down the bier 
before Jesus, complaining to him of the rudeness of the 
child rem 

Jesus, seeing the little pale face, asked who the lad 
was, and what had happened to him. He had been bit- 
ten by a serpent, they said, and poisoned. Was it far 
from here?" asked the boy-king. ,; Xo; but a few rods 
away," they replied. " Let us go to the place ; and bring 
the sick boy too." There was nothing to be said : so the 
bearers led the way back to the spot they came from, 
followed by the young king and his courtiers. Soon they 
came to a cave. Jesus walked boldly in. and shortly re- 
appeared with — what do you think, in his hand ? A lon£ 
snake, which he grasped firmly by the neck. Approaching 
the sick boy. who lay quite still, with closed eyes, and 
frame already stiffening, he put the snake's head to the 
wound, and bade him suck out the poison he had instilled. 
Th^ reptile did so : the child slowly opened his eyes ; the 
color came to his cheeks ; he moved ; he rose up ; he 
looked gratefully into the face of his deliverer. The ser- 
pent lay dead at the foot of the bier. 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



241 



EVILS QUICKLY KILLED IN THE SEED. 

TN the hoary times of old. a host of men quitted their 
I dwelling-places, and wandered down to the land 
through which the River Xile flows. They rejoiced at the 
sight of the magnificent river, and built huts on its 
banks. Soon after, the terrible monster called the croc- 
odile came from the floods, destroying both man and 
beast in its horrid jaws. Then the people cried with a 
loud voice to their god Osiris to free them from the 
monster. And Osiris answered by the mouth of the 
wise priests, saying, " Is it not enough that the deity 
gave you strength and reason ? He who implores for 
help, without using his own power, will call in vain." 

Then they seized swords and staves, and besieged the 
monster in his marshy abode. They erected walls and 
dikes ; and, in a few days, they completed works, which, 
before, they dreamed not of their power ro do. So they 
became conscious of that hidden power, by which, in 
later times, the mighty pyramids and obelisks were 
erected ; and they invented many tools, and became 
acquainted with arts which they did not know before. 

For, by the combat against hostile powers, the dormant 
abilities of man are roused. 

However, the people were in want of proper weapons 
fully to vanquish the scaly monster of the flood. They 
were only able to repel its attacks for a short time, and 
were content therewith. 

By degrees, the zeal to defend themselves grew faint. 
The monsters increased and multiplied, and their fury 
became more and more terrible. Then the foolish and 
16 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



degenerating people resolved to worship the crocodile as 
a god. Voluntarily, they offered sacrifices : the monster 
became more powerful than ever; but the people were 
sunk in cowardice and stupor. 

The bow which is forever on the stretch will break at 
last, and the revenge will reach the tyrant. Osiris had 
compassion on the miserable people, and encouraged 
them to new exertions by the mouth of the wise priest. 
Then the banks of the river echoed with the shouts of 
the warriors, and the waters became red with the blood 
of the slain. The strength of the combatants began to 
fail : then the priest and the distressed people called 
to Osiris for help, and the deity listened in mercy to 
their cry. 

A little animal, the ichneumon, appeared on the banks 
of the Nile. 

" Behold," exclaimed the priest, " Osiris sends help ! " 

" How ! dost thou mock us ? " cried the people. Then 
the priest answered, and said, " Wait for the issue, and 
confide in the supreme power. By the hand of the 
deity, great things may be brought to pass by trifling 
means. " 

The number of the terrible monsters decreased visibly. 
The people beheld with admiration how the little animal 
was searching diligently for the eggs and the young of the 
crocodile. Thus it destroyed, in a short time, the lives 
of hundreds of those formidable tyrants of the Nile, and 
released the land of its plague, — a thing that so many 
heads and hands had not been able to accomplish. 

" See ! 99 said the wise priest : "if you wish to extin- 
guish an evil, attack its germs and roots. Then a 
trifle may do what, afterwards, the united efforts of 
many will be unable to bring to pass." 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE, 



243 



THE BEST USE FOR A GIFT. 

A COUNTRYMAN brought from town five of the 
finest peaches that were to be had. His children 
had never seen such before : therefore they were highly 
delighted to see the beautiful fruit, with its red cheeks 
and delicate bloom. The father divided thern among 
his four boys, and gave one to their mother. In the 
evening, when the children were going into the little 
bedroom, he asked them, " Well how did you like the 
nice peaches ? " 

" Very much indeed, dear father," said the eldest 
boy. " It is a delicious fruit, of so luscious and delicate 
a flavor ! I have taken care of the stone, and mean to 
'grow a tree." 

" Well done ! " answered the father. " It is the duty 
of a countryman to be economical, and to think of the 
future." 

" I ate mine up directly," exclaimed the youngest, 
" and threw the stone away ; and mother gave me half 
of hers. Oh, how sweet it was ! how it melts in one's 
mouth ! " 

" Well," said the father, " you have not done very 
wisely, but, at all events, like a child. You have still 
time enough in life to become prudent." 

Then the second son began, ' ; I picked up the stone 
which my little brother threw away, and opened it. 
There was a kernel inside as sweet as an almond ; but I 
sold my own peach, and received so much money for it, 
that I may buy a dozen when I go to town." 

The father shook his head, and said, " That is cleverly 



I 



244 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



done, but not like a child. Heaven preserve thee from 
becoming a trader ! " 

" And you, Edmund ? " asked the father. 

Edmund answered frankly, " I took my peach to the 
son of our neighbor, sick George, who has the fever. He 
would not take it : so I put it down on his bed, and went 
away." 

" Well," said the father, " who has made the best use 
of his peach ? " Then all the boys exclaimed, " Brother 
Edmund ! " Edmund was silent, and his mother em- 
braced him with tears in her eyes. 



THE INVISIBLE KING. 

IN a distant country in the East, there lived a little 
tribe in idolatry and superstition. It came to pass 
that they quarrelled about the succession, and agreed, at 
last, to choose a stranger to govern them. 

They met a man of the house of Israel, of the name 
of Abiah, and chose him for their king. It was about 
the time that Shalmaneser had destroyed the house 
of Israel, and scattered the Israelites throughout the 
world. 

Abiah, who was a pious man, was greatly grieved that 
he should reign over an idolatrous nation ; and, when 
they refused to leave their idols, he was very wroth. 
But the Spirit of the Lord spake to him, " Thinkest thou 
I cannot destroy their idols ? And yet I suffer the sun 
to shine upon them. Go, and do thou likewise," 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



245 



Then Abiah suffered them, and reigned wisely ; for he 
thought, " Perhaps my son may be successful.'' When 
the hour came that he should die. he said to the people, 
'•Behold, I shall die, and my son will bo your king. 
You have not yet seen his face : but ye shall know his 
government by the fruits thereof. Follow him : he will 
lead you wisely." 

The people promised to do so : and, when Abiah was 
dead, they obeyed the unknown sovereign, and pros- 
pered greatly ; for his doings were like those of a father, 
and the commands that issued from his gates were full 
of wisdom, justice, and kindness. Like the beams of 
the sun, the favor of the unknown monarch was spread 
abroad over all the inhabitants of the land : and. wher- 
ever there was want, the king's help was sure to come. 
Then they all marvelled, and said. " We see him not : 
how can he see us ? " For he lived concealed in his 
house,- and no man had beheld his face. 

The people longed, therefore, the more to see and to 
bless him ; and they said, " We have our gods before our 
eyes, and can see and handle them : why may we not 
see the face of the king, who is more to us than a 
father ? " 

Others made images of him, according to their own 
imaginings ; and each man said of his own, - ; Behold, 
this is he : he must be like unto this ! " 

At last, their desire became very great ; and the people 
assembled before the gates of the palace, and implored 
with one voice, " Oh, let our lord, the king, surfer us to 
behold his face ! " 

Thereupon the high gates were opened, and the king 
came forth, clothed in simple raiment, and said, " Be- 
hold, I am your king ! " 

Then the people blessed him, and shouted for joy ; 



246 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



but, when they looked fixedly at Him, they were as- 
tonished, and cried. " We know thy face! " For he had 
often walked among them, but they had not known him, 
thinking him to be a servant or a stranger. 

Then the king beckoned with his hand ; and, when si- 
lence prevailed, he lifted up his voice, and said, " Xow 
you see that I am a man like you. Think ye that these 
hands and feet, these eyes and lips, which are mortal and 
perishable, have reigned over you ? Not so. That 
which has guided, blessed, and gladdened you through 
me, ye cannot see : neither can I see it. 

" Can you see wisdom and kindness and justice ? They 
were near to you when I walked, unrecognized, among 
you. Now you see me ; but you do not see them. Then 
judge ye what is in my earthly form. Can the visible 
create the invisible ? And that which is in me also is 
not mine, but His who made me your king.*' 

Thus spoke this excellent prince ; and the people re- 
turned to their homes, blessing and thanking him. And 
they broke in pieces the pictures and images which they 
had made of him. Soon after, they also broke their 
idols, and believed in Him who is invisible. 



LEGENDS OF VIRTUE. 



247 



A PARABLE OF CONSCIENCE. > 

IN a village on the Rhine, a schoolmaster was one day 
teaching in his school : and the sons and daughters of 
the villagers sat around, listening with pleasure ; for his 
teaching was healthful and kindly. He was speaking of 
the good and bad conscience, and of the still voice of the 
heart. After he had finished speaking, he asked his pu- 
pils, 4; Who among you is able to tell me a parable on 
this matter ? " 

One of the boys stood forth, and said, " I think I can 
tell a parable ; but I do not know whether it be right." 

" Speak in your own words," answered the master. 
And the boy began : " I compare the calmness of a good 
conscience, and the disquiet of an evil one, to two paths 
on which I walked once. When the enemy passed 
through our village, the soldiers carried off by force my 
dear father and our horse. When my father did not 
come back, my mother and all of us wept and mourned 
bitterly, and she sent me to the town to inquire for him. 
I went : but. late at night, I came back sorrowfully ; 
for I had not found my father. It was a dark night in 
autumn. The wind roared and howled in the oaks and 
firs, and between the rocks ; the night-ravens and owls 
were shrieking and hooting ; and I thought in my soul 
how we had lost my father, and of the misery of my 
mother when she should see me return alone. 

t; A strange terror seized me in the dreary night, 
and each trembling leaf terrified me. Then I thought 
to myself, 4 Such must be the feelings of a man's heart 
who has a bad conscience.' " 



248 A CHILD'S BOOK OF BELIGIOX. 



" My children," said the master, " would you like to 
walk in the darkness of night, seeking in vain for your 
dear father, and hearing nought but the roar of the 
storm and the screams of the beasts of prey ? " 

" Oh, no ! " exclaimed all the children, shuddering. 

Then the boy resumed his tale, and said, " Another 
time, I went the same way with my sister. We had been 
fetching many nice things from town for a feast, which 
father was secretly preparing for mother, to surprise 
her the next day. It was late when we returned ; 
but it was in spring: the sky was bright and clear; and 
all was so calm, that we could hear the gentle murmur 
of the rivulet by the way, and on all ^sides nightin- 
gales were singing. I was walking hand in hand with 
my sister ; but we were so delighted, that we hardly 
liked to speak. Then our good father came to meet us. 
Now I thought again to myself, ' Such must be the state 
of a man who has done much good.' " 

When the boy had finished his tale, the master looked 
kindly at the children, and they said earnestly, " Yes: 
we will become good men." 



A CHRISTMAS SERVICE. 



I. 



Carol. 



2. 



Scripture Lesson: 

JOHN i. 1-17. LUKE i. 68, &c; xi. 4-15. 



T was the calm and silent night : 



JL Seven hundred years and fifty-three 
Had Rome been growing up to might, 
And now was queen of land and sea. 

jSTo sound was heard of clashing wars; 
Peace brooded o'er the hushed domain ; 

Apollo, Pallas, Jove, and Mars 
Held undisturbed their ancient reign 
In the solemn midnight, 



3- 




Centuries ago, 



250 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



5 Twas in the calm and silent night : 

The senator of haughty Rome, 
Impatient, urged his chariot's flight, 

From lordly revel rolling home ; 
Triumphant arches, gleaming, swell 

His breast with thoughts of boundless sway. 
What recked the Roman, what befell 

A paltry province far away, 
In the solemn midnight, 
Centuries ago ? 

"Within that province far away 

Went plodding home a weary boor : 
A streak of light before him lay, 

Fallen, through a half-shut stable-door, 
Across his path. He passed ; for nought 

Told what was going on within : 
How keen the stars, his only thought ! 

The air how calm and cold and thin ! 
In the solemn midnight, 
Centuries ago. 

Oh strange indifference ! low and high 

Drowsed over common joys and cares : 
The earth was still, but knew not why ; 

The world was listening, unawares. 
How calm a moment may precede 

One that shall thrill the world forever ! 
To that still moment none would heed ; 

Man's doom w x as linked, no more to sever, 
In the solemn midnight, 
Centuries ago. 



A CHRISTMAS SERVICE. 



251 



It is the calm and solemn night : 

A thousand bells ring out, and throw 
Their joyous peals abroad, and smite 

The darkness, charmed and holy now. 
The night that erst no name had worn, 

To it a happy name was given ; 
For in that stable lay, new-born, 

The peaceful Prince of earth and heaven, 
In the solemn midnight, 
Centuries ago ! 

Alfred Dommett. 

4- 

Hymn or Song. 

5- 

Lessons or Address. 

6. 

Festi vi ties. 
7. 

Christmas Carol. 

8. 

B ENE DICTION. 



THE OLD YEAR. 



H YMN. 

2. 

Scripture Lesson. 

SERVICE-BOOK, p. 96. 1 THESS. chap. v. 



RING out, wild bells, to the wild sky, 
The flying cloud, the frosty light : 
The year is dying in the night ; 
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die. 

Ring out the old, ring in the new ; 
Ring, happy bells, across the snow : 
The year is going, — let him go ; 

Ring out the false, ring in the true. 



THE OLD YEAR. 



253 



Ring out the grief that saps the mind 
For those that here we see no more ; 
Ring out the feud of rich and poor; 

Ring in redress to all mankind. 

Ring out a slowly-dying cause, 
And ancient forms of party strife ; 
Ring in the nobler modes of life, 

With sweeter manners, purer laws. 

Ring out the want, the care, the sin, 
The faithless coldness of the times ; 
Ring out, ring out, my mournful rhymes ; 

But ring the fuller minstrel in. 

Ring out false pride in place and blood, 
The civic slander and the spite ; 
Ring in the love of truth and right, 

Ring in the common love of good. 

Ring out old shapes of foul disease, 
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold, 
Ring out the thousand wars of old ; 

Ring in the thousand years of peace. 

Ring in the valiant man, and free, 
The larger heart, the kindlier hand ; 
Ring out the darkness of the land ; 

Ring in the Christ that is to be. 

Alfred Tennyson. 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 



4- 

Hymn or Song. 
5- 

Lessons or Address. 

6. 

TASTE AND CHOICE. 

THE Future hides in it 
Gladness and sorrow : 
We press still thorough, — 
Nought that abides in it 
Daunting us, — onward ! 

And solemn before us, 
Veiled, the dark portal, — 
Goal of all mortal : 
Stars silent rest o'er us, 
Graves under us silent. 

While earnest thou gazest 
Comes boding of terror, — 
Comes phantasm and error ; 
Perplexes the bravest 
With doubt and misgiving. 



THE OLD YEAR. 



But heard are the voices, 
Heard are the sages, 
The worlds and the ages : 
" Choose well ; your choice is 
Brief, and yet endless. 

" Here eyes do regard you 
In Eternity's stillness ; 
Here is all fulness, 
Ye brave, to reward you : 
Work, and despair not." 

7- 

H YMN. 
8. 



Benediction. 



THE NEW YEAR. 



I. 

Hymn. 

2. 

Scripture Lesson: 

REVELATION xxi., xxii. 
3- 

THE NEW YEAR. 

YON bells in the steeple, ring, ring out 
your changes, 
How many soever they be ; 
And let the brown meadow-lark's note, as he 
ranges, 

Come over, come over, to me. 

Yet bird's clearest carol, by fall or by swelling, 

No magical sense conveys ; 
And bells have forgotten their old art of telling 

The fortune of future days. 

256 



THE NEW YEAR, 



257 



M Turn again, turn again, w once they rang cheer- 

iiy, 

While a boy listened alone ; 
Made his heart yearn again, musing so wearily 
All by himself on a stone. 

Poor bells, I forgive you. Tour good days are 
over ; 

And mine — they are yet to be. 
Xo listening, no longing, shall aught, aught dis- 
cover : 

You leave the story to me. 

The foxglove shoots out of the green matted 
heather, 

And hangeth her hoods of snow ; 
She was idle, and slept till the sunshiny weather : 
Oh ! children take long to stow. 

I wish, and I wish, that the spring would go 
faster, 

Nor long summer bide so late, 
And I could grow on like the foxglove and aster; 
For some things are ill to wait. 

I wait for the day when dear hearts shall dis- 
cover, 

TThile dear hands are laid on my head, 
M The child is a woman ; the book may close over; 
For all the lessons are said." 

17 



258 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



I wait for my story : the birds cannot sing it, — 

Not one, as he sits on the tree ; 
The bells cannot ring it ; but long years, oh, bring 
it, 

Such as I wish it to be ! 

Jean Ingelow. 



Hymn or Song. 



Lessons or Address. 



Ah ! who shall lead us thither ? 
Clouds in the evening sky more darkly gather, 
And shattered wrecks lie thickly on the strand : 
Who leads us with a gentle hand 
Thither, oh ! thither, 
Into the Silent Land ? 

Into the Silent Land ! 

To you, ye boundless regions 



6. 



Re cita ti o n : 



THE SILENT LAND. 




THE NEW YE AIR. 



259 



Of all perfection ! tender morning visions 

Of beauteous souls, the Future's pledge and band! 

Who in Life's battle firm doth stand 

Shall bear Hope's tender blossoms 

Into the Silent Land. 

Longfellow {from Salis). 

% 

Hymn or Song. 

8. 



Benediction. 



EASTER. 



I. 

Hymn. 



Scripture Lesson : 

JOHN xx. 1 COR. xv. 



AWAKE, thou wintry earth ! 
Fling off thy sadness ! 
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth 
Your ancient gladness ! 
Christ is risen ! 

Wave, woods, your blossoms all; 

Grim Death is dead! 
* Ye weeping funeral-trees, 

Xift up your bead ! 
Christ is risen ! 

m 



EASTER. 



261 



Come, see ! the graves are green ; 

It is light : let's go 
Where our loved ones rest 

In hope below. 

Christ is risen ! 

All is fresh and new, 

Full of spring and light : 
Wintry heart, why wear'st the hue 

Of sleep and night ? 
Christ is risen ! 

Leave thy cares beneath; 

Leave thy worldly love ; 
Begin the better life 

With God above ! 
Christ is risen ! 

Thomas Blackburn, 

4- 

EASTER CAROL. 

LET the merry ehurch-bells ring ; 
Hence with tears and sighing : 
Frost and cold have fled from spring ; 

Life hath conquered dying ; 
Flowers are smiling, fields are gay, 

Sunny is the weather : 
With our risen Lord, to-day, 
All things rise together. 



262 



A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION, 



Let the birds sing out again 

From their leafy chapel, 
Praising Him with whom in vain 

Sin hath sought to grapple. 
Sounds of joy come loud and clear 

As the breezes nutter : 
" He arose, and is not here," 

Is the strain they utter. 

Let the past of grief be past ; 

This our comfort giveth, — 
He was slain on Friday last, 

But to-day he liveth : 
Mourning heart must needs be gay 

Out of sorrow's prison, 
Since the very grave can say, 

" Christ — he hath arisen ! " 

5. 

Lessons or Address. 

6. 

Festivities. 

7- 

Hymn or Song. 
3. 

Benediction 



WHITSUNDAY. 



I. 

Hymn. 



Scripture Lesson: 

ISA. lv. JOHN iii. 



3- 

COME, deck our feast to-day 
With flowers and wreaths of May ; 
And bring an offering holy, pure, and sweet. 
The Spirit of all grace 
Makes earth his dwelling-place : 
Prepare your hearts your Lord with joy to meet ! 

O golden rain from heaven ! 
Thy precious drops be given 
Upon the Church's waiting, thirsty field ; 

263 



264 A CHILD'S BOOK. OF RELIGION. 



And let thy waters flow, 
Where'er the sowers sow 
The seed of Truth, that living fruit it yield. 

Come, O thou trackless wind ! 

Breathe quickening o'er our mind ; 
Let not the flesh to rule the soul aspire ! 

O sunshine of pure love ! 

Thy sweet glow let us prove, 
And fill our hearts with thy soft, quenchless fire. 

O Spirit ! stir our will 

Its high aims to fulfil ; 
Be with us always when we go and come ; 

Deep in our spirits dwell, 

And make their inmost cell 
Thy temple pure, thine ever-holy home. 

Schmolck. 

Hymn or Song. 

COME, HOLY SPIRIT. 

COME, thou Almighty Will! 
Our fainting bosoms fill 
With thy great power : 
Strength of our good intents, 
Our tempted hours' defence, 
Calm of faith's confidence, 
Come in this hour ! 



WHITSUNDA Y. 



265 



Come, thou most tender Love ! 
Within our spirits move, — 

Their sweetest guest ; 
Extinguish passion's fire, 
Exalt each low desire, 
To deeds of love inspire, 

Quickener and Rest. 

Come, Light serene and still ! 
Our darkened spirits fill 

With thy clear day ; 
Guide of the feeble sight, 
Star of grief's darkest night, 
Reveal the path of right, 

Show us thy way ! 

5- 

Lesson or Address, 

6. 

Hymn or Song. 

OLOVE divine, whose constant beam 
Shines on the eyes that will not see, 
And waits to bless us while we dream ! 
Thou leav'st us when we turn from thee ! 

All souls that struggle and aspire, 
All hearts of prayer, by thee are lit; 

And, dim or clear, thy tongues of fire 
On dusky tribes and centuries sit. 



266 A CHILD'S BOOK OF RELIGION. 

Nor bounds nor clime nor creed thou kno 
Wide as our need thy favors fall : 

The white wings of the Holy Ghost 
Stoop, unseen, o'er the heads of all. 

7- 



Benediction. 



PART IV. 

HYMNS. 



267 



209 

1 Our Father! we thank thee for sleep, 

For quiet and peaceable rest ; 

We bless the kind care that doth keep 

Thy children from being distressed : 
Oh, how in their weakness, shall children repay 
Thy fatherly kindness, by night and by day ? 

Our voices shall utter thy praise. 

Our hearts shall o'erflow with thy love ; 

Oh, teach us to walk in thy ways, 

And lift us earth's trials above ! 
The heart's true affection is all we can give ; 
In love's pure devotion, oh, help us to live ! 

So long as thou seest it right 

That here upon earth we should stay, 

We pray thee to guard us by night, 

And help us to serve thee by day ; 
And when all the days of this life shall be o'er, 
Receive us in heaven, to serve thee the more. 



Q Poor and needy though I be, 
God Almighty cares for me ! 
Gives me clothing, shelter, food, — 
Gives me all I have of good, 
Compasses with angel-bands, 
Bids them bear me in their hands ; 
Parents, friends, 'twas God bestowed ; 
Life and all descend from God. 

Man, we for his kindness love ; 
How much more our God above ; 
Unto^him we'll ever give 
Thanks for all that we receive ; 
Unto him we'll tune our song, 
Happy as the day is long : 
" This my joy forever be — 
God Almighty cares for me ! " 



270 ives. 7 «- 




Q Father, now to thee we raise 

Grateful songs and hymns of praise ; 
Let thy blessing on us rest, 
With thy smile may we be blest ; 
Thanks to thee, our Father kind, 
For the truths of heart and mind, 
For the love and watchful care, 
That have blessed us through the year. 
Thou hast piven us friends most dear, 
Parents, teachers, pastor, here, 
Who for us both watch and pray, 
And would lead in thy right way. 
Father, may we hear their voice, 
Make religion our first choice, 
Onward press, and upward move, 
Filling life with deeds of love. 



Father, be our guide in youth, 
Lead us in the paths of truth ; 
May we thy true children be, 
Honest, loving, brave, and free ; 
May we love to do thy will, 
In the world our part fulfil, 
And, as year by year goes by, 
Grow in truth and purity. 

Foes we know are to be met, 
Snares the path of life beset ; 
Clouds upon the valley rest, 
Rough and dark the mountain's breast 
Therefore guide us, make us strong, 
Keep us, Lord, from going wrong ; 
And the faults which make us fall, 
Help us, Lord, to conquer ail. 



Little travelers, Zionward, 

Each one entering into rest, 
In the kingdom of your Lord, 

In the mansions of the blest ; 
There, to welcome, Jesus waits, 

Gives the crowns his followers win — 
Lift your heads, ye golden gates ! 

Let the little travellers in ! 

Who are they whose little feet, 

Pacing life's dark journey through, 
Now have reached that heavenly seat 

They had ever kept in view 1 
" I from Greenland's frozen land; " 

" I from India's sultry plain ; " 
" I from Afric's barren sand ; " 

" I from Islands of the main." 

" All our earthly journey past, 

Every tear and pain gone by. 
Here together met at last, 

At the portal of the sky ! 
Each the welcome ' Come ' awaits, 

Conquerors over death and sin ! " — 
Lift your heads, ye golden gates ! 

Let the little travelers in ! 



72 AFTON. Us. 




5 Approach not the altar with doom in thy soul, 
Nor let thy feet falter from terror's control ; 
God loves not the sadness of fear and mistrust ; 
Oh ! serve him with gladness — the loving and just ! 

His bounty is tender, his being is love ; 

His smile fills with splendor the blue, arch above ; 

Confiding, believing, oh ! enter always 

His courts with thanksgiving, his portals with praise ! 

Come not to his temple with pride in thy mien, 
But lowly and simple, in courage serene ; 
Bring meekly before him the faith of a child, 
Bow down and adore him with heart undefiied ! 



273 



6 

The Lord is ray Shepherd, no want shall I know ; 
I feed in green pastures, safe folded I rest ; 
He leadeth my soul where the still waters flow, 
Restores me when wandering, redeems me when opprest. 

Through the valley and shadow of death tho' I stray, 
Since thou art mv guardian, no evil I fear ; 
Thy rod shall defend me, thy staff be my stay ; 
No harm can befall with my Comforter near. 

In the midst of afflction my table is spread ; 
With blessings unmeasured my cup runneth o'er; 
With perfume and oil thou anointest my head ; 
Oh, what shall I ask of thy providence more ? 

Let goodness and mercy, my bountiful God, 

Still follow my steps till I meet thee above ; 

I seek by the path which my forefathers trod 

Through the land of their sojourn, thy kingdom of love. 



7 

How dear is the thought that the angels of God 
May bow their bright wings to the world they once trod ; 
Will leave the sweet songs of the mansions above, 
To breathe o'er our bosoms some message of love ! 

They come, on the wings of the morning they come, 
Impatient to lead some poor wanderer home ; 
Some sinner to save from his darkened abode, 
And lay him to rest in the arms of his God. 

They come when we wander, they come when we pray, 
In mercy to guard us wherever we stray ; 
A glorious cloud, their bright witness is given ; 
Encircling us here are these angels of heaven. 



8 

Acquaint yourselves early, dear children, with God, 
And joy, like the sunbeam, shall beam on your road ; 
And peace, like the dewdrop, shall fall on your head, 
And sleep, like an &npfel °hall visit your bed. 



HINTON, P, M. 



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9 The seraphs bright are hovering 

Around the throne above, 
Their harps are ever tuning 

To thrilling tones of love. 
Or through the azures soaring, 

Or poised on snowy wing, 
With glowing hearts adoring, 

Sweet choral notes they sing. 
From earth is daily rising 

A rich, harmonious song, 
From sunny, perfumed flowers 

By breezes borne along. 



From hills in sunlight glittering, 
From smooth, deep emerald seas, 

A cloud of praise is rising 
Like incense on the breeze. 

And childhood's voice is chanting 

A full, harmonious song, 
When morning light is breaking, 

Or evening sweeps along. 
For should we fail proclaiming 

Our great Redeemer's praise, 
The stones, our silence shaming, 

Would their hosanna raise. 



Now to our loving Father, God, 

A gladsome song begin : 
His smile is on the world abroad, 

His joy our hearts within. 
We need not, Lord, our gladness leave, 

To worship thee aright ; 
Our joyfulness for praise receive ! 

Thou mak'st our lives so bright ! 

We turn to God a smiling face, 

He smiles on us again ; 
He loves to see our cheerfulness, 

And hear our gladsome strain. 
The pure in heart are always glad ; 

The smile of God they feel : 
He doth the secret of his joy 

To blameless hearts reveal. 



How beautiful the setting sun ! 

The clouds how bright and gay ! 
The stars appearing one by one, 

How beautiful are they ! 
And when the moon climbs up the sky, 

And sheds her gentle light, 
And hangs her crystal lamp on high. 

How beautiful is night ! 
And can it be I am possessed 

Of something brighter far ? 
Glows there within this little breast 

That which outshines each star ? 
Yes : should the sun and stars turn pale, 

The mountains melt away, 
This flame within shall never fail, 

But live in endless day. 



276 



ASPHODEL. L. M. 




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]_Q Father, adored in worlds above ! 

Thy glorious name be hallowed still ; 
Thy kingdom come in truth and love; 
And earth, like heaven, obey thy will. 



Lord, make our daily wants thy care ; 
Forgive the sins which we forsake ; 
In thy compassion let us share, 
As fellow-men of ours partake. 



277 



Evils beset us every hour ; 
Thy kind protection we implore; 
Thine is the kingdom, thine the power, 
The glory thine for evermore. 



13 God is so good that he will hear, 
Whenever children humbly pray ; 
He always lends a gracious ear 
To what the youngest child can say. 

His own most holy word declares, 
That, as a tender father will, 
He listens to our lowly prayers, 
And what we need will grant us still. 

He loves to hear a youthful tongue 
Thank him for all his mercies given ; 
And when on earth his praise is sung 
By children's lips, *t is heard in heaven. 



14= ^ ew every morning is the love 
Our waking and uprising prove ; 
Through sleep and darkness safely brought, 
Eestored to life, and power, and thought. 

New mercies, each returning day, 

Do hover round us as we pray ; 

New perils past, new sins forgiven, 

New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven, 

Old friends, old scenes, will lovelier be 
As more of heaven in each we see ; 
Some softening gleam of love and prayer 
Shall dawn on every cross and care. 

The trivial round, the common task, 
Will furnish all we ought to ask ; 
Room to deny ourselves ; a road 
To bring us daily nearer God. 

Do thou, O Lord, in thy dear love 
Fit us for perfect rest above ; 
And help us, this, and every day, 
To live more nearly as we pray. 



278 



ANGEL. 6s & 5s. 




]_5 Morn amid the mountains. 

Lovely solitude, 
Gushing streams and fountains, 

Murmur, " God is good/'' 
Now the glad sun breaking, 

Pours a golden flood ; 
Deepest vales awaking, 

Echo, " God is good." 
Hymns of praise are ringing, 

Through the leafy wood ; 
Songsters sweetlv singing, 

Warble, " God is good." 
Wake, and join the chorus, 

Man, with soul endued ! 
He, whose smile is o'er us, 

God. our God is good. 



]_(3 Hand in hand with angels, 

Through the world we go ; 
Brighter eyes are on us 

Than we blind ones know. 
Tenderer voices cheer us 

Than we deaf will own ; 
Never, walking: heavenward, 

Can we walk alone. 



279 

Hand in hand with angels ; 

Some are out of sight, 
Leading us, unknowing, 

Into paths of light. 
Some soft hands are covered 

From oar mortal grasp, 
Soul in soul to hold us 

With a firmer clasp. 
EJand in hand with angels, 

Walking every day, 
How the chain may brighten, 

Xone of us can say. 
Yet it doubtless reaches 

From earth's lowest one, 
To the loftiest seraph 

Standing near the throne. 



XT' Little drops of water, 

Little grains of sand, 
Make the mighty ocean, 

And the solid land. 
Thus the little minutes, 

Humble though they be, 
Make the mighty ages 

Of eternity. 
Little deeds of kindness, 

Little words of love, 
Make our earth an Eden, 

Like the heaven above. 
So our little errors 

Lead the soul away 
From the paths of virtue, 

Oft in sin to stray. 



X8 Fluck the rose while blooming ; 

Now ; tis fresh and bright ; 
Wait not till to-morrow; 

Time is swift in flight. 
Do thy deeds of kindness 

Ere to-morrow's light ; 
What may come, we know not ; 

Time is swift in flight. 
Woukl'st thou make life useful, 

Work before 'tis night ; 
Else thoirllt be regretting, 

Time is swift in flight. 



280 SONG. L. M. 




Sing to the Lord, and loud proclaim 
His mighty and his loving name ! 
Oh, may he not be named alone, 
But by our sure experience known ! 

Through every age his gracious ear 
Is open to his servants' prayer ; 
Nor can one humble soul complain 
That it hath sought its God in vain. 

What unbelieving heart shall dare 
In whispers to suggest a fear, 
While still he owns his ancient name, 
The same his power, his love the same ? 

To thee our souls in faith arise ; 
To thee we lift expectant eyes, 
And boldly through the desert tread, 
For God will guard where God shall lead. 



Up to the throne of God is borne 
The voice of praise at early morn ; 
And he accepts the punctual hymn, 
Sung as the light of day grows dim. 
Nor will he turn his ear aside, 
From holy offe]*ngs at noon-tide ; 
Then here reposing, let us raise 
A song of gratitude and praise. 
Look up to heaven ! th' obedient sun 
Already half his race has run ; 
He cannot halt nor go astray, 
But our immortal spirits may. 
Lord, since his rising in the east, 
If we have faltered or transgressed, 
Guide, from thy love's abundant source, 
What yet remains of this day's course. 
Help with thy grace, throughout life's day, 
Our upward and our downward way ; 
And glorify for us the west, 
When we shall sink to final rest. 



Oh, come, loud anthems let us sing, 
Loud thanks to our almighty King ; 
For we our voices high should raise, 
When our salvation's Rock we praise. 
The depths of earth are in his hand, 
Her secret wealth at his command ; 
The strength of hills, that threat the skies, 
Subjected to his empire lies. 

The rolling ocean's vast abyss 
By the same sovereign right is his ; 
'Tis moved by his almighty hand, 
That formed and fixed the solid land. 
Into his presence let us haste, 
To thank him for his favors past ; 
To him address, in joyful songs, 
The praise that to his name belongs. 



How sweetly flowed the gospel's sound 
From lips of gentleness and grace, 

When listening thousands gathered round, 
And joy and reverence filled the place ! 

From heaven he came — of heaven he spoke, 
To heaven he led his followers' way ; 

Dark clouds of gloomy night he broke, 
Unveiling an immortal day. 



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Q 3 Lo, the lilies of the field ! 

How their leaves instruction yield ! 

Hark to nature's lesson given 

By the blessed birds of heaven ! 

Every bush and tufted tree 

Warbles trust and piety : 

C iildren, banish doubt and sorrow, — 

God provideth for the morrow. 



One there lives, whose guardian eye 

Guides our earthly destiny ; 

One there lives, who, Lord of all, 

Keeps his children lest they fall : 

Pass we, then, in love and praise, 

Trusting in him, all our days, 

Tree from doubt and faithless sorrow,— 

God provideth for the morrow. 



Gracious God, our heavenly Father ! 

Meet and bless our school, we pray; 
As in humble trust we gather, 

Teachers, scholars, here to-day, 
Every joy, and every blessing, 

From thy bounteous hand we own ; 
May thy love, our souls possessing, 

Draw us nearer to thy throne. 

Weak, imperfect, tempted, erring, 

From thy precepts, Lord, we stray ; 
Let thy spirit, from our wandering, 

Bring us back to virtue's way. 
Humble, penitent, confiding, 

May we rest our hope in thee ; 
In thy favor, Lord, abiding, 

In thy peace and purity. 



Father, now to thee we raise 
Grateful songs and hymns of praise; 
Let thy blessing on us rest, 
With thy smile may we be blest : 
Thanks to thee, our Father kind, 
For the truths of heart and mind, 
For the love and watchful care, 
That have blessed us through the year. 

Father, be our guide in youth, 
Lead us in the paths of truth ; 
May we thy true children be, 
Honest, loving, brave, and free ; 
May we love to do thy will, 
In the world our part fulfil ; 
And, as year by year goes by, 
Grow in truth and purity. 



284 



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around us, fair with flowers, 
Fields of beauty sleeping lie ; 
All around us clarion voices 

Call to duty stern and high. 
Thankfully we will rejoice in 

All the beauty God has given ; 
But beware it does not win us 

From the work ordained of heaven. 
Following every voice of mercy 
With a trusting, loving heart, 
Let us in life's earnest labor 

Still be sure to do our part. 
Now, to-day, and not to-morrow, 

Let us work with all our might, 
Lest the wretched faint and perish 
In the coming stormy night. 



Father, hear the prayer we offer ! 

Not for ease that prayer shall be, 
But for strength that we may ever 

Live our lives courageously. 



Not for ever in green pastures 

Do we ask our way to be, 
But the steep and rugged pathway 

May we tread rejoicingly. 

Not for ever by still waters 

Would we idly quiet stay, 
But would smite the living fountains 

Prom the rocks along our way. 

Be our strength in hours of weakness, 
In our wanderings be our guide ; 

Through endeavor, failure, danger, 
Father, be thou at our side ! 



God has said — " For ever blessed 
Those who seek me in their youth — 

They shall find the path of wisdom, 
And the narrow way of truth." 

Be our strength, when we are weakness 
Be our wisdom and our guide ; 

May we walk in love and meekness, 
Nearer to our Father's side. 

Then, when evening shades shall gather 
Shall our faithful footsteps come 

To the dwelling of our Father, 
To our blessed spirit-home. 



In our childhood's morning, Father, 
While the world is bright and fair, 

We would in thy remple gather, 
Find our truest pleasures there. 

Fain w r ould we upon thy altar 

Lay the hearts that should be thine, 

But our feeble footsteps falter — 
Guide us by thy light divine. 

Shield us in temptation's trial ; 

Be our strength when we are weak ; 
Aid us in each self-denial ; 

Make us lovingj truthful, meek. 



286 GENTIAN. §s & 7s. 




30 ^ife * s not a fleeting shadow, 
Or a wave upon the beach ; 
Though our days be swift, yet lasting 
Is the stamp we give to each. 

Life is ours for faithful labor, 
Of the hand, or of the thought ; 

Every hour and every moment 
Is with living meaning fraught. 

Waking every morn to duty. 

Ere its hours shall pass away, 
Let some act of love or service 

Mark it as a holy day. 

Work ! our Father worketh ever ! 

He who works not cannot play : 
Work for use, or work for beauty, 

So sweet rest shall crown each day. 



31 Guide me, O thou great Jehovah, 

Pilgrim through this earthly land : 
I am weak, but thou art mighty ; 
Hold me with thy powerful haQd. 

Open thou the crystal fountain, 
Whence the healing waters flow ; 



Let the fiery, cloudy pillar 
Lead me all my journey through. 

Feed me with thy heavenly manna, 
In the barren wilderness ; 

Teach my lips to sing hosanna 
To the Lord of righteousness. 



Praise the Lord, when blushing morning 
Wakes the blossoms fresh with dew ! 

When the world, again created, 
Beams with beauties fair and new ! 

Praise the Lord, when early breezes 
Come so fragrant with the flowers ! 

Praise, thou willow by the brookside ! 
Praise, ye birds among the bowers ! 

Praise the Lord ! and may his blessing 
- Guide us in the way of truth, 
Keep our feet from paths of error, 
Make us holy in our youth. 



God is love ; his mercy brightens 
All the path in which we rove ; 

Bliss he wakes, and woe he lightens ; 
God is wisdom, God is love. 

Chance and change are busy ever ; 

Man decays, and ages move ; 
Bat his mercy waneth never ; 

God is wisdom, God is love. 

E'en the hour that darkest seemeth, 
Will his changeless goodness prove : 

From the gloom his brightness streameth 
God is wisdom, God is love. 

He with earthly cares entwineth 
Hope and comfort from above ; 

Every where his glory shineth ; 
God is wisdom, God is love. 



238 





CRUSADER, P. M. 



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34: Come, join rhe nolle army 
Who battle for the Right, 
Come, join the noble army ! 

Our watchword, ''Right is Might." 
With the Cross upon our banner, 



While our voices sing hosarma, 
We're Children of the Light. 

March on, ye little soldiers, 
The battle you shall win ! 
March on, ye little soldiers, 
Till you have conquered sin ! 
For see, Jesus is before you. 
And the Lord is ever o'er you, 
And heart and hope within. 

Then do not be discouraged, 

But bear up to the end ; 
0, do not be discouraged, 

But with the Wrong contend. 
God will make his sons victorious, 
And will give them visions glorious, 
And keep them to the end. 

And when the conflict's over, 

With all the noble band, 
The glorious conflict over, 
As victors you shall stand, 
Crying, Liberty for ever ! 
Crying. Liberty for ever, 
Through all the hoi j land! 

5 Quiet, Lord, my fro ward heart ; 
Make me loving, meek, and mild; 
Upright, simple, free from art ; 
Make me. Lord, thy holy child ; 
From distrust and envy free ; 
Pleased with all that pleaseth thee. 

As a little child relies 

On a care beyond his own, 

Knows beneath his father's eyes 

He is never left alone ; 

So would I with thee abide, 

Thou, my Father, Guard, and Guide ! 



290 COURAGE, 




36 Now to heaven our prayer ascending, 

God speed the right ! 
In a noble cause contending, 

God speed the right! 
Be our zeal in heaven recorded, 
With success on earth rewarded, 

God speed the right ! 

Be that prayer again repeated, 
God speed the right ! 



Ne'er despairing, though defeated, 

God speed the right ! 
Like the good and great in story, 
If we fail, we fail with glory, 

God speed the right ! 

Patient, firm, and persevering, 

God speed the right ! 
Never loss nor danger fearing, 

God speed the right ! 
Pains nor toils, nor trials heeding, 
And in heaven's own time succeeding, 

God speed the right ! 

Still our onward course pursuing, 

God speed the right ! 
Every foe at length subduing, 

God speed the right ! 
Truth, our cause, whate'er delay it, 
Tbere's no power on earth can stay it, 

God speed the right ! 



Shall this life of mine be wasted ? 

Shall this vineyard lie untilled ? 
Shall true joy pass by unta-ted. 

And my soul remain unfilled ? 
Shall the God-given hours be scattered 

Like the leaves upon the plain ? 
Shall the blossoms lie unwatered 

By the drops of heavenly rain? 

Shall this heart spend all its treasures 

On the things that fade and die ? 
Shall it love the hollow pleasures 

Of bewildering vanity ? 
No ; I was not born to trifle 

Life away in dreams or sin ; 
No ; I must not, dare not stifle 

Longings such as these within. 




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38 Saviour ! to the living well 

Thou hast brought our little feet ; 
Where its purest waters swell, 
Thou hast ma de our safe retreat. 

Other lambs, to thee as -dear, 
Wander in the desert bare, 

Thirsting for the fountain clear, 
Fainting in the sultry air. 

We would lead them to thy side, 
That, like us, they may be blest ; 

Tender Shepherd ! "be their guide 
To the pastures of our rest. 

We would bring them to the spring 
Of thy never-failing love ; 

Let its waters murmuring 

All their pain and thirst remove, — 



293 

Till within their hearts that wave, 

Source of hidden life, shall be ; 
Welling up to bless and save, 

Springing to eternity. 



39 Praise to God ; oh ! let us raise 

From our hearts a song of praise ; 
Of that goodness let us sing-, 
Whence our lives and blessings spring. 

Praise to Him who made the light ; 
Praise to Him who gave us sight; 
Praise to Him who formed the ear ; 
He our humble praise will hear. 

Praise Him for our happy hours ; 
Praise Him for our varied powers ; 
For these thoughts that soar above ; 
For these hearts he made for love. 

For the voice he placed within, 
Bearing witness when we sin ; 
Praise to Him whose tender care 
Keeps the watchful guardian there ! 

Praise the mercy that did send 
Jesus for our guide and friend ; 
Praise Him, every heart and voice, 
Him who makes the world rejoice. 



4-Q Let us, with a gladsome mind, 
Praise the Lord, for he is kind ; 
For his mercy shall endure, 
Ever faithful, ever sure. 

He with all-commanding might, 
Filled the new-made world with light ; 
For his mercy shall endure, 
Ever faithful, ever sure. 

All things living he doth feed, 
His full hand supplies their need ; 
For his mercy shall endure, 
Ever faithful, ever sure. 

Let us, then, with gladsome mind, 
Praise the Lord, for he is kind ; 
For his mercy shall endure, 
Ever faithful, ever sure. 



294 



BALM. C. M. 



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4:1 I loved a song-bird of the spring, 
I loved its warbling lay ; 
But, ah ! my singer spread his wing, 
And rose, and soared away. 



I loved a butterfly so fair, 

"With wings all golden bright ; 

Among the tulips rich and rare 
It wandered from my sight. 

I loved a rose, I loved it best 

Of all I yet had found ; 
But when the sun had reached the west, 

Its bright leaves strewed the ground. 

What can I love that takes not flight, 
Nor fades with breeze or blast ? 

Oh, love the truth ! the truth both bright 
And beautiful will last. 



4:3 Now that my journey's just begun, 
My road so little trod, 
I'll come before I farther run, 
And give myself to God. 

And lest I should be ever led 
In sinful paths to stray, 

I would at once begin to tread 
In virtue's pleasant way. 



295 

What sorrows may my steps attend, 

I never can foretell ; 
But, if the Lord will be my friend, 

I know that all is well. 

Father, whatever grief or ill 

For me may be in store, 
Make me submissive to thy will, 

And I need ask no more. 



4^ 3 Lord ! I would own thy tender care, 
And all thy love to me ; 
The food I eat, the clothes I wear, 
Are all bestowed by thee. 

My health, and friends, and parents dear, 

To me by God are given ; 
I have not any blessing here, 

But what is sent from heaven. 

Kind angels guard me every night, 
As round my bed they stay ; 

Nor am I absent from thy sight 
In darkness or in day. 

Such goodness, Lord, and constant care, 

A child can ne'er repay ; 
But may it be my daily prayer 

To love thee and obey. 



4:4: ^ e l° ve tne Father — He's so good ; 
We see him in the flower ; 
We hear him in the rain-drop ; 
He speaketh in the shower. 

His smile is in the sunlight, 
His beauty in the bow ; 

We hear his whisper in the breeze, 
And in the zephyr low. 

His wisdom's in the dew-drop 
That sparkles on the lea ; 

His truth is in the violet's hue, 
His love in all we see. 

In every thing we look upon, 
His image we can see ; 

We love the Father — He's so good, 
And teaches us to be. 



296 



BLOSSOM. C. M. 



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4^5 There's not a tint that paints the rose, 
Or decks the lily fair, 
Or streaks the humblest flower that grows, 
But God has placed it there. 

There's not of grass a simple blade, 

Or leaf of lowliest mien, 
Where heavenly skill is not displayed, 

And heavenly wisdom seen. 

There's not a star, whose twinkling light 

Illumes the spreading earth ; 
There's not a cloud, or dark, or bright, 

But mercy gave it birth. 

Lord ! how thy wonders are displayed, 

Where'er we turn the eye ; 
If we survey the ground we tread, 

Or gaze upon the sky ! 



4:6 My God, my Father — blissful name — 
O may I call thee mine ? 
May I with sweet assurance claim 
A portion so divine ? 



This only can my fears control, 
And bid my sorrow fly ; 



What harm can ever reach my soul 
Beneath my Father's eye ? 

Whatever thy providence denies, 

I calmly would resign ; 
For thou art good, and just, and wise ; 

Oh bend my will to thine. 

Whate'er thy sacred will ordains, 
Oh give me strength to bear ; 

■But let me know my Father reigns, 
I'll trust his tender care. 



Be thou, 0 God, by night, by day, 
My guard, my guide from sin, 

My life, my trust, my light divine, 
To keep me pure within. 

Pure as the air, when day's first light 

A cloudless sky illumes, 
And active as the lark that soars 

Till heaven shines round its plumes. 

So may my soul, upon the wings 

Of faith, unwearied rise, 
Till at the gate of heaven it sings, 

'Midst light from Paradise. 



The bud will soon become a flower, 

The flower become a seed ; 
Then seize, O youth ! the present hour 

Of that thou hast most need. 

Do thy best always — do it now — 

For in the present time, 
As in the furrows of a plough, 

Fall seeds of good or crime. 

The sun and rain will ripen fast 
Each seed that thou hast sown ; 

And every act and word at last 
By its own fruit be known. 

And soon the harvest of thy toil 

Rejoicing thou shalt reap ; 
Or o'er thy wild neglected soil 

Go forth in shame to weep. 



298 DOVE, CM. 8 lines. 





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49 The bird let loose in eastern skies, 

Returning fondly home, 
Ne'er stoops to earth her wing, nor flies 

Where idle warblers roam ; 
But high she shoots through air and light, 

Above all low delay ; 
Where nothing earthly bounds her flight, 

Nor shadow dims her way. 



So grant me, Lord, from every snare 

And stain of passion free, 
Aloft, through virtue's purer air, 

To urge my course to thee. 
No sin to cloud, no lure to si ay 

My soul, as home she springs ; 
Thy sunshine on her joyful way, 

Thy freedom on her wings ! 



What if the little rain should say, 

So small a drop as I 
Can ne'er refresh these thirsty fields, 

I'll tarry in the sky ? 
What if a shining beam of noon 

Should in its fountain stay, 
Because its feeble light alone 

Cannot create a day ? 

Doth not each rain-drop help to form 

The cool, refreshing shower, 
And every ray of light to warm 

And beautify the flower 1 
Go thou, and strive to do thy share; — 

One talent, — less than thine, — 
Improved with steady zeal and care, 

Would gain rewards divine. 



When warmer suns, and bluer skies, 

Proclaim the opening year, 
What happy sounds of life arise, 

What lovely scenes appear ! 
Earth with her thousand voices sings 

Her song of gladsome praise ; 
And every blade of grass that springs, 

God's loving law obeys. 

The wind-flower and the violet fair 

Reflect the morning sky ; 
The birds make music in the air, 

The brook goes singing by. 
Like this spring morning, sweet and clear. 

That greets our opening eyes, 
The spring of heaven's eternal year 

Shall bring new earth and skies, 






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52 O God, onr strength, to thee the song 

With grateful hearts we raise ; 
To thee, and thee alone, belong 

All worship, love, and praise. 
In trouble's dark and stormy hour, 

Thine ear hath heard our prayer ; 
And graciously thine arm of power 

Hath saved us from despair. 

And thou, O ever gracious Lord, 
Wilt keep thy promise still 



If. meekly hearkening to thy word, 

We seek to do thy will. 
So shall thy choicest gifts, 0 Lord, 

Thy faithful people bless ; 
For them shall earth its stores afford, 

And Heaven its happiness. 



How sweet, how heavenly is the sight 

When those that love the Lord, 
In one another's peace delight, 

And thus fulfil his word ! — 
When each can feel his brother's sigh, 

And with him bear a part ! 
When sorrow flows from eye to eye, 

And joy from heart to heart ! — 

When, free from envy, scorn, and pride, 

Our wishes all above, 
Each can his brother's failings hide, 

And show a brother's love ! 
Love is the golden chain that binds 

The happy souls above ; 
And he's an heir of heaven that finds 

His bosom glow with love. 



Even he. who lit the stars of old, 

And filled the ocean broad, 
Whose works and ways are manifold — 

Our Father is our God. 
There comes no change upon his years, 

No failure to his hand ; 
His love will lighten all our cares, 

His law our steps command. 

Then, as his children we may come, 

For he hath called us near, 
And bade our souls take courage from 

The love that casts out fear. 
Lord, w r hile on earth we work and pray, 

For good withheld or given, 
Help us in faith and love to say, 

Father, who art in heaven ! 




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5 5 The sweet June days are come again ; 

Once more the glad earth yields 
Her golden wealth of ripening grain, 

And breath of clover fields ; 
And deepening shade of summer woods, 

And glow of summer air, 
And winging thoughts, and happy moods 

Of love, and joy, and prayer. 



The sweet June days are come again, 

The birds are on the wing, 
God's praises, in their loving strain, 

Unconsciously they sing. 
We know who giveth all our good, 

And, 'neath the arches dim, 
And ancient pillars of the wood, 

We lift our grateful hymn. 



Lord ! I would own thy tender care, 

And all thy love to me ; 
The food I eat, the clothes I wear, 

Are all bestowed by thee. 
'Tis thou preservest me from death, 

And dangers every hour ; 
I cannot draw another breath 

Unless thou giv'st me power. 

Kind angels guard rne every night, 

As round my bed they stay ; 
Nor am I absent from thy sight 

In darkness, or by day. 
Such goodness, Lord, and constant care, 

A child can ne'er repay ; 
But may it be my daily prayer 

To love thee and obey. 



Another hand is beckoning us, 

Another call is given ; 
And glows once more with angel steps 

The path that leads to heaven. 
0, half we deemed she needed not 

The changing of her sphere, 
To give to heaven a shining one, 

Who walked an angel here. 

Fold her, O Father, in thine arms ; 

And let her henceforth be 
A messenger of love between 

Our human hearts and thee. 
Still let her mild rebukings stand 

Between us and the wrong, 
And her dear memory serve to make 

Our faith in goodness strong. 



S04 HOME, 





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Ob. home of Love ! we sin o: of thee, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land! 
In joyous tones of melody, 

Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 
Thy skies are clear, thy fields are fair, 
And flowers perfume the balmy air, 
And ail is bright and radiant there, 
Haavenly land, our heavenly land! 

We know thy homes are bright and fair, 

Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 
We know our loved ones gather there, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 
And troops of children dance and play, 
And weave sweet flowers in garlands gay, 
And gain new beauties day by day, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land. 

Ob ! let the voices that we love, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 

Speak from the radiant home above, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 

Oh ! let us feel the glory there 

Encompass us like summer air, 

And keep us from all sin and care, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 

Thy flowers shall strew our earthly way, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 

Bright eyes shall make our night as day, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 

We'll tread with courage then, and faith ; 

3 ; or every rugged w4y earth hath 

May be to thy dear shore a path, 
Heavenly land, our heavenly land ! 



306 HEAVEN. 




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£3 Q The sun shines bright in the spirit's happy home, 
'Tis summer, and all is gay ; 
The soft win*! blows, and the flowers are in bloom, 

And the birds make music all the day. 
The children sp«:rt on the sweet and tender grass, 

So happy, and all so bright, 
So we, when our toil and our sorrow all shall pass, 
Will be sharers in that home of delight. 
Chorvs. — Weep no more in sorrow, oh ! weep no more in fear : 
We will sing a song of the sweet heavenly home, 
The beautiful home that is near. 
There they toil no more in weariness and pain, 

For folly,, or pleasure, or pride ; 
But Love is weaving her golden chain, 

And is reaching her hand to guide. 
So the days go by like the sunshine on the heart, 

With a light and joyous tread ; 
The time never comes when the loving ones must part, 
Or sigh for the joys that are fled. 
Chorus. — Weep no more, &e. 

Oh ! ye heavenly ones, still gently o'er us bend, 

And lead us with gentle hand ; 
Yet a little while, and our sorrows here will end, 

Then we'll join with your happy band. 
Yet a little while — then keep us brave and glad. 

And give us your blessed light ; 
And we'll sing on our way a happy, happy song, 
Of the sweet summer home so bright. 
Chorus. — Weep no more, &e. 



309 



60 

la the twilight hours, 'mid the breath of flowers, 

When the soul in silence dwells, 
Sweet echoes come from the far-off Home, 

Like the voice of evening bells. 

Chorus. — 0 brother ! 0 sister ! loved, joyous, free ! 
We will walk hand in hand to the Beautiful Land, 
Till i f s golden shores we see. 

There summer bright forever glows, 

And love immortal beams ; 
There waters flow in rippling song 

From life's abounding streams. 

Chorus. — 0 brother, &c. 

There lilies bloom of purest white, 

In hearts whom earth knew not; 
There weary souls find heavenly peace, 

When sorrow's work is wrought. 

Chorus. — 0 brother, &c 

From the golden shore, where our loved ones stand, 

While they watch with eager eyes, 
Sweet voices come, and they call us home — 

To the home in the radiant skies. 

Chorus. — 0 brother, &c. 

0 children ! sing in joyous notes, 

Of the blessed Angel-land ; 
And let us walk in Love and Truth, 

Till we join that happy band. 

Chorus. — 0 brother, &c. 



310 AMARANTH, 




(31 Kind words can never die, 

Cherished and blest ; 
God knows how deep they lie, 

Stored in the breast ; 
E'en childhood's simple rhymes 
Said o'er a thousand times, 
Go through all years and climes, 

The heart to cheer. 
Chorus. — Kind words can never die, never die, 

Kind words can never die, — no, never die. 

Childhood can never die ; 

Wrecks of the past 
Float o'er the memory, 

Bright to the last. 
Many a happy thing, 
Many a sunny spring, 
Floats on Time's ceaseless wing, 

Far, far away. 
Chorus. — Childhood can never die, never die, &c. 



311 

Sweet thoughts can never die, 

Though, like the flowers, 
Their brightest hues may fly 

In wintry hours. 
But when the gentle dew 
Gives them their charms anew, 
With many an added hue 

They bloom again. 
Chorus. — Kind thoughts can never die, &c. 

Our souls can never die, 

Though in the tomb 
We may all have to lie, 

Wrapt in its gloom. 
What though the flesh decay ; 
Souls pass in peace away — 
Live through eternal day 

With God above. 
Chorus. — Our souls can never die, never die, 

Our souls can never die, — no, never die. 



QQ 'Tis a lesson you should heed — 

Try, try again ; 
If at first you don't succeed, 

Try, try again. 
Then your courage should appear ; 
For, if you will persevere, 
You will conquer, never fear : 

Try, try again. 

Once or twice though you should fail, 

Try, try again ; 
If at last you would prevail, 

Try, try again. 
If we strive, 'tis no disgrace, 
Though we may not win the race ; 
What should you do in that case ? 

Try, try again. 

If you find your task is hard, 

Try, try again ; 
Time will bring you your reward — 

Try, try again : 
All that other folks can do, 
Why, with patience, may not you ; 
Only keep this rule in view : 

Try, try again. 



9 1 3 




63 

TVeep not for those who have passed from our sight — 

They are not gone, they are not gone ; 
Round thee they hover on pinions of ligh h ; 

They are not gone, are not gone. 
Fondly they watch thee as guardians of love, 
Seeking to guide thee where'er thou dost rove, 
Striving to lead thee to bright courts above ; 
They are not gone, are not gone. 

Knowest thou not. in the stillness of night. 

They are not gone, they are not gone ; 
Seest thou not in the visions of light. 

They are not ^one. are not gone ? 
Feelest thou not a bright presence in dreams. 
Casting about thee its radiant beams — 
Light which around them unceasingly gleams'.' 

They are not gone, are not gene, 

Journey serene then, till earth-life is o'er, 
They are not gone, they are not gone ; 

Then they will guide thee to heaven's fair shore — 
They are not gone, are not gone. 

Then they will circle thy spirit in light, 

Robing it fair for its heavenward flight 

To the blest mansions, glorious, bright ; 
They are not gone, are not gone. 



314 THE CHRISTMAS TREE. 

Words by Hbs. 3L N. Meigs. Musk by Feet-. Schilling. 

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64 

There's a wonderful tree, a wonderful tree, 

The happy children rejoice to see, 

Spreading its branches year by year. 

It comes from the forest to flourish here ; 

Oh ! this wonderful tree, with its branches wide, 

Is always blooming at Christmas-tide. 

'Tis not alone in the summer's sheen 

Its boughs are broad, and its leaves are green ; 

It blooms for us when the wild winds blow, 

And earth is white with feathery snow ; 

And this wonderful tree, with its branches wide, 

Bears many a gift for the Christmas-tide. 

'Tis all alight with its tapers' glow, 

That flash on the shining eyes below, 

And the strange sweet fruit on each laden bough 

Is all to be plucked by the gatherers now. 

Oh ! this wonderful tree, with its branches wide, 

We hail it with joy at the Christmas-tide. 

And a voice is telling, its boughs among, 

Of the shepherds' watch and angels' song ; 

Of a holy Babe in a manger low, 

The beautiful story of long ago, 

When a radiant star threw its beams so wide, 

To herald the earliest Christmas-tide. 

Then spread thy branches, wonderful tree, 
And bring some dainty gift to me, 
And fill my heart with a burning love 
To Him who came from His home above — 
From His beautiful home with the glorified, 
To give us the joys of the Christmas-tide. 



3L6 HARK! A BURST OF HEAVENLY MUSIC. 

Words by Mrs. M. N. Meigs. Music by Feed. Schilling. 

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go Hark ! a burst of heavenly music, 

From a band of seraphs bright, 
Suddenly to earth descending, 

In the calm and silent night : 
To the shepherds of Judea, 

Watching in the earliest dawn, 
Lo, they bear the joyful tidings, 

Jesus, Prince of Peace is born ! 
Chorus. — Sweet and clear those angel voices, 

Echoing through the starry sky, 
As they chant the heavenly chorus, 

" Glorv be to God on high." 



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Slumbering in a lowly manger 

Lies the Mighty Lord of all, 
And before the holy Stranger 

See the trembling shepherds fall. 
He has come, the long expected, 

Full of wisdom, love and grace, 
To redeem His weary creatures, 

To restore our human race. 
Chorus. — So let angels wake the chorus, 

So let happy men reply; 
Chanting the celestial anthem, 

"Glory be to God on high." 

And this joyful Christmas morning 

Breaking o'er the world below, 
Tells again the wondrous story 

Shepherds heard so long ago ; 
Who shall still our tuneful voice?, 

Who the tide of praise shall stem, 
Which the blessed angels taught us 

In the fields of Bethlehem ? 
Chorus. — Hark ! we hear again the chorus, 

Ringing through the starry sky; 
And we join the heavenly anthem, 

" Glory be to God on high ! " 





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